One Step At A Time
by MadeintheUS
Summary: What if Piper never left Alex in Paris after Diane died and they never went to prison? A once thriving marriage crumbled in the palm of Alex's hand as Alex moved up the ladder in the cartel. Even though they're separated can Alex leave the cartel and reconcile with Piper? Forgive me, I suck at summaries.
1. Finalized

**Hi, it's been awhile. I'm not sure what I want to come of this, but this idea has been swirling around in my head for some time now.**

 **Just a heads up, this fic starts off with a newly divorced Vauseman. Yes, you read correctly, this story contains a divorced Vauseman, so please press the return button if you do not want to read such fic, I won't be one bit disappointed, but if I so choose to add to this, I guarantee Vauseman is endgame.**

 **I haven't written angst before, so be gentle.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

 _ **One Step At A Time**_

It had been six long, excruciatingly emotional months, an emotional year at that, but the paper Piper held in her hand was the key to hopefully a new found happiness.

As soon as the judge signed the divorce decree and pronounced the declaration in front of open court, a tension that Piper had held inside of her for months, lifted from her body. This action did not go unnoticed by an uneasy Alex who was standing next to her now ex-wife.

Alex had done everything she could think of to prolong the divorce. Piper was growing furious at the time it was taking to finalize the divorce but Alex had a mission. She wanted to prove to Piper that she could better herself and veer away from the dangers and temptations of the cartel without a mess, but both women knew breaking away from the cartel was nearly impossible. Time and time again Piper gave her chance after chance but each time proved to be just like the last. Words were spoken but no action was taken.

Piper glanced to her right at Alex who was dressed in a black women's suit that accentuated her figure perfectly with her hair flowing in long loose curls. Her eyes had bags under them as if she hadn't slept in days and her shoulders slumped forwards unlike her usual arrogant posture. The blonde haired woman noticed that Alex wasn't making eye contact with the judge or herself but kept her eyes locked on the floor as if it were more important than what they were here for. While returning her gaze back up at the judge who was double checking the documents, Piper's eye caught the glimmer of Alex's diamond encrusted wedding band that she had yet to take off. Piper looked down at her left ring finger and rubbed where the diamond ring had once sat with the pad of her finger.

 _Eight months earlier…_

 _Things had been going south for a while but Alex sensed something was different about this fight. She had that gn_ a _wing feeling in the bottom of her stomach that was making its presence known more and more by the minute._

 _This particular fight had seemed to make its way to the center of their relationship and reared its ugly head right when Alex thought Piper had simply accepted the fact that she couldn't just quit the cartel. Alex often tried to distract Piper and prolong the what seemed like a weekly fight with a new extravagant house instead of the penthouse apartment, expensive pieces of jewelry, and even an anniversary trip to the Caribbean, but that trip started in what seemed to be a reconciliation but ended in an argument because the reality of Alex having to go back to work when they arrived home had soon appeared._

 _Alex was standing on one side of the large kitchen island and Piper was standing on the other. Tears were threatening to spill out of Piper's eyes but she used all the strength she could find to keep them at bay. Alex had just arrived home from a two week long drug run in Tokyo and was scheduled to leave again in three days. All the tall woman wanted was a peaceful few days at home but as soon as she walked in from the garage and saw Piper sitting at the island with a blank gaze on her face and her hands clasped in front of her, she knew all too well what was going on._

" _Tell me what you want, Piper." Alex asked_

" _I want you to come home. That's what I want. I can't keep doing this. Twenty-one days out of the month, sometimes more, I'm here alone. I can't even spend my days here because it's so fucking empty, I look around and I see you everywhere and that just makes it worse. It's so fucking lonely without you here, Al."_

 _Alex was quick to reply, "That's bullshit, and you know it. You have P-"_

 _Piper cut Alex off abruptly, "That's not enough, Alex. How could you not want to be here?"_

" _Whoa, whoa, whoa." Holding up her hands to get Piper to stop, Alex began "Who said that I didn't want to be here? I know sure as hell I rather_ _ **would**_ _be here than spending three quarters of the month on a plane and somewhere thousands of miles away from here with complete fucking strangers._

 _Alex's temper was beginning to rise and it was apparent to Piper. Every week they went round and round on this never ending carousel of Alex's job and how it was detrimental to their relationship._

 _A tear escaped from the corner of Piper's eye. "Then why don't you quit? Find an oh what's that called,_ _ **legal job.**_ _"_

 _The sarcasm in Piper's voice was hard to miss but Alex was able to reign in the anger that was tempting to burst out of her mouth._

" _How many times have we been over this, Piper? I feel this is the only fucking thing we talk about anymore."_

" _Because it is." Piper replied with her face buried in her hands. "You have a responsibility here at home Alex as a wife and..."_

 _Alex snapped, her hand came smacking down onto the granite countertop. "You don't think I fucking know that? How do you think we can afford all of this?"_

 _Alex motioned around the kitchen that had granite everywhere and stainless steel appliances that practically did everything for you at the touch of a button._

 _Alex continued, "If it wasn't for me and this job? Where do you think we would be Piper? Huh? Tell me."_

 _By now the tears were flowing freely down Piper's face._

" _I just want to be happy, Al. That's all."_

 _Piper's voice was merely a whisper._

" _So you're telling me that none of this makes you happy? I bust my ass to give you these things and you're not happy?"_

 _Now it was Piper's turn to get angry. Time and time again Piper had explained to Alex that they could live in a shitty apartment in Queens and she would be happy as long as Alex was home every day of the month and wasn't working for the cartel. Alex often laughed this declaration off and told Piper that they would never live in Queens and that was the end of the conversation._

" _Alex I don't need expensive and elegant things to be happy. Happiness is so much simpler than that. I've told you multiple times what would make me happy but you shrug it off and keep going with your life." Piper paused to stop and catch her breath from the crying and to get a bottle of water from the fridge before continuing. Alex couldn't bear to make eye contact with Piper while she was crying over this topic of conversation. "You can't tell me your happy with this lifestyle either."_

" _I certainly don't enjoy it."_

" _Then quit."_

 _Alex exhaled loudly making eye contact with her wife and shook her head. "I'm not having this conversation with you again. I'm going to bed. I have three days to relax and I'm_ _ **certainly**_ _not going to spend it arguing with you just like every other day off I have."_

 _This was it for Piper. She clearly saw that Alex wasn't going to fight for their relationship, she simply wanted to keep going on the way they had been for the past six months when Piper finally realized she was fed up with Alex being away when she desperately needed her._

 _Alex had turned away to exit the kitchen when she heard Piper yell "Fuck You, Alex."_

 _As soon as Alex turned around to look at Piper, a small shiny object pelted her right in the chest and clinked on the floor of the kitchen. Alex didn't even need to look down to know what Piper threw at her. Before Alex could get a word out, Piper exited the kitchen through the second entrance. Alex walked out of the kitchen and glanced upwards at the balcony just in time to see Piper storm into their bedroom and slam the white double doors. She audibly heard the click of the lock ring out as she placed her hand on the banister to begin her descent up the stairs towards her wife._

 _Noting that she wasn't going to be sleeping in her own bed, Alex perched her glasses on top of her head and sat down on the bottom of the stairs. Burying her head in her hands, Alex tried to control her emotions. Alex realized she had a choice to make. She could either keep working for the cartel and further deteriorate her marriage or find a way out. Alex sat on the stairs until she devised a plan and felt she could be mature enough to speak to her wife._

 _Returning back to the kitchen to pick up Piper's wedding ring, when she picked it up, Alex couldn't help but remember how happy she was the day she and Piper got married. All of their close family and friends were around including Piper's parents. Nicky, Lorna, Red, Fahri, and even Kubra were all in attendance and couldn't be happier for the pair. The first two and a half years of their marriage was bliss but the higher up Alex went in the cartel the more Piper's patience wore thin. Alex kissed the ring and began her walk upstairs._

 _Climbing up the stairs and walking the short distance from the landing to their door, Alex pressed her ear against it and heard Piper sitting against the door sobbing. Feeling her heart break more than it already was Alex knocked lightly._

" _Pipes, babe. I'm sorry. I can figure something out. Will you let me in please so we can talk?"_

 _There was no response but Alex could still hear Piper's weeping._

" _Baby, I have your wedding ring. I bet your finger looks so desolate without it on."_

 _Piper looked down at her ring finger and thought it looked just fine._

 _Leaning her forehead against the door, Alex checked the doorknob just in case but found it was indeed locked._

" _Pipes…I'm sorry…Could you at least say something?"_

 _It took all the strength in the world to get the sentence she wanted to say out, but Piper faintly whispered, "I want a divorce."_

 _Alex relaxed a little hearing Piper respond but only caught the beginning of the sentence._

" _What do you want babe? Tell me. I can make this better."_

 _Piper leaned her head back against the door and said it with a little more confidence this time._

" _I want a divorce."_

 _Alex's heart felt like it stopped when she heard the last word. Never once in this marriage had she thought things were bad enough to even mention that word, but maybe Piper really was tired of it all. Maybe she wasn't home enough. Alex knew that Piper didn't deserve this kind of treatment, but what else was she to do?_

 _She opened her mouth to say something but only small gasps came out._

" _Please don't leave." Alex finally whispered._

 _The tall woman simply slid down the door and let the first tear of many fall._

Walking out of the courthouse at an arm's length apart, Alex looked over at her new ex-wife. Piper looked a little stressed but the Ray Bans Aviators covered the true emotions she was feeling. Alex could look into Piper's eyes once and know how she was feeling. She wasn't proud of being newly divorced, but she had somewhat come to the realization that this was for the best but deep down she knew that Piper was the one for her. They would end up back together some day. Maybe not now or anytime in near, but eventually they would.

Piper's stopping at the curb broke Alex from her thoughts.

"Are you gonna pick up your son tonight or are you leaving?"

Alex could hear the sarcasm in Piper's voice but refrained from throwing it back at her.

"I'll come pick him up. I told Kubra I needed the week off to finalize this and get my stuff from the house. What time do you want me to pick Parker up?"

Piper cringed at the name Kubra but told Alex to pick up their two year old son at five.

"You can get the rest of your stuff while you're there. I put it all in your suitcases and there's a few boxes. If I find anything else you can pick it up when you bring him back Sunday."

Alex nodded.

"Okay. I have to get back to work. See you at five."

Before Alex could respond she was looking at the back of Piper's head walking into the crowd of people on the New York street.

"See you at five." Alex mumbled to herself and hailed a cab to go back to her apartment.

 **A/N: Yeah, I don't know if I'm going to continue this but this has been swirling around my mind for a while now. Let me know what you think.**


	2. The After Effects

_**The After Effects**_

"How was it?"

"Well Polly, it's finalized. I'm now a single mother with an ex-wife who works for an international drug cartel."

When Piper had told Polly what Alex had really done for a living, it was fifteen minutes before Piper was to walk down the aisle. Polly admitted she already knew from reading one of Alex's text messages over her shoulder several months ago but opted to keep her mouth shut. It was unlike to Polly to keep quiet, especially with this kind of subject. Over the years Alex and Polly had learned to tolerate each other for Piper's sake but Piper knew she wouldn't get anything more from the two even if she tried.

Piper took off her Ray Bans and Polly saw a small tear escape the corner of her best-friends eye. Polly knew the past year had been a lot for Piper to handle but never once did she falter. Walking around the counter she wrapped her arms around Piper's lanky frame and squeezed as hard as she could. The blonde woman laid her forehead on Polly's shoulder and silently cried the tears she had been holding in all morning since she left Popi to go to the courthouse.

"It's gonna be okay. You did what was best for you and Parker." Polly whispered into Piper's ear. "You're such a strong woman and a fantastic mother, Pipes. Don't forget you have an amazing support group behind you."

"We were together for ten years, Pol. Four of those we were married. In the midst of it all we have a son, who is now in the middle of this." Piper sunk down and sat on the floor next to the register with silent tears rolling down her face, not having a care in the world that shoppers could hear the events of her life and the emotional turmoil she was in. Polly nervously looked down at her best friend on the floor and looked to see how many customers were perusing. Looking back down at Piper, the short woman contemplated closing for the day so she could be there for her friend. She noticed that the last shopper had left and she raced to the door to lock it and turn the open sign around to closed.

When Polly arrived back at Piper's side, the blonde haired woman was standing up and going to her office.

"Where are you going?" Polly asked as she followed Piper down the hallway.

"I'm gonna take the rest of the day off, Pol." Piper tried to give the faintest smile but that proved to be too much. "I'm gonna go get Parker and just spend time with him before Alex comes and gets him."

Polly nodded.

"She's taking him for the night?"

"No." Piper shook her head. "She's taking him for the weekend."

"Wow, she's not jetting off to some foreign land?"

"No." Piper whispered. "I'll see you later, Polly. Thanks. For everything."

Piper hugged her best friend before walking to the back exit of the store and getting into her BMW X5, a gift Alex had bought her in an attempt to keep her happy. Piper opened one of the many compartments in search for a tissue to dry the tears on her face but found nothing but a random baby sock and one of Alex's Earth, Wind, and Fire CD's. Shoving the CD back in its compartment, Piper slammed the lid and placed her forehead on the steering wheel. All the while, Polly was looking out the second story window of Popi down at Piper wishing she could do something to ease the pain for her friend.

* * *

The cab ride back to her apartment wasn't long but the events of the morning were swimming around her brain and that made the ride seem everlasting. She had just been declared divorced from the one thing that she thought would forever be a constant; Piper. No words could describe how emotionally tormented she had felt the past eight months and it all started when Piper had said the word.

After Piper had stated what she wanted, Alex pleaded and begged Piper the next morning when Piper had finally opened the door to retrieve a crying Parker from his room. The blonde woman simply looked at Alex who had slept on the floor outside of the bedroom door and told her she had one week to find somewhere else to stay and disappeared into Parker's room down the hall. Alex had spent the next night in a hotel room.

It didn't take long for Alex to find an apartment located on the Upper West Side. The apartment had three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a balcony that overlooked the city, and a kitchen big enough to play baseball in. Of course one of the bedrooms was Parkers, but she couldn't leave him in his room at night after she put him down and always ended up carrying him to bed with her. She wanted to spend every moment of her time with him because not knowing when she would see him next wreaked havoc on her brain. Missing Parker's arrival into the world had ultimately been the turning point into the tumultuous downfall of hers and Piper's marriage. Nothing ever seemed the same after that no matter how hard Alex tried to apologize and make it up to her. Since Piper couldn't travel with her anymore now that they had a baby, the separation anxiety became almost unbearable. Parker was an easy baby, but being the only parent for weeks at a time took a toll on Piper.

 _It was two weeks away from Piper's due date and Alex had scheduled to take the next month off as soon as she arrived back in New York to prepare for the arrival of their son but one text message fucked those plans up royally._

 _Alex paced around the Heathrow airport anxiously as she was waiting to board her plane back to the states. As soon as she got the text message from Polly saying Piper was in labor she ran out of her meeting with Fahri and ran back to her hotel room to retrieve her suitcase._

" _There's nothing you can do to prolong his arrival?" Alex asked._

" _No, Alex. I'm sorry. He's gonna be here in the next few hours." Polly replied as her patience was at its precipice with Alex and her irresponsibility._

" _Fuck! Her due date isn't for another two weeks! Let me talk to Piper!"_

 _Polly complied and tried handing the phone to Piper but Alex could faintly hear her telling Polly that she didn't wish to speak to her before another contraction washed through her body._

" _Polly just shove the phone next to her ear!"_

" _Alex, she doesn't want to talk to you…"_

 _Realizing she was just going to be going in circles with Polly, she let out a sigh and told her to tell Piper she loved her and to text her as soon as Parker was born. She couldn't live with herself knowing that she was missing the birth of her child, but there was nothing else she could do. The plane ride back to New York felt like the longest flight she had ever flown on._

 _The moment Alex landed at JFK airport, and turned on her phone, there was a picture message from Polly with a picture of a naked Parker laying on the scale waiting for his measurements to be taken with his mouth wide open in a scream._

 _A stray tear fell trailed down her face as she sat in the back of the cab rubbing the pad of her thumb over the picture._

Alex had been living in her apartment for seven and a half months but she spent the majority of her time traveling. The only times she was really here was when she had those rare few days off but on those days, she had Parker. When Piper filed for divorce, Alex knew she had to be careful with what she said about her lifestyle or she could have very easily ended up in prison. Piper had never once brought up the subject of child support but Alex transferred ten thousand dollars into Piper's bank account every month. It was more of a silent agreement than having to bring it up in court.

Walking into her apartment, Alex saw that it was still in the same state it was when she left that morning. Clothes were strung about the bedroom from when she was trying to find an outfit to wear to the court hearing. Her coffee cup was still sitting in the same place on the dining room table. Parker's toys were scattered about the living room from the last time he was there.

As the raven haired woman stepped through the threshold into her bedroom, her eyes landed on the picture that was framed on the night stand next to her bed. The picture was of her, Parker, and Piper. They had just taken Parker to the beach for the first time when he turned a year old. The couple's smiles were genuine and Parker was grinning with his new teeth. Alex ran a tender hand over the picture, reminiscing on how her heart was filled with love that day and returned back to the kitchen to get the house prepared for Parker's visit.

* * *

"Hello, Mrs. Vause! Picking up Parker early today?"

Piper felt like she shrunk to the size of an ant at the use of what should be her former last name. She didn't even feel right using it now that she was divorced but when the judge had asked her if she wanted to go back to her maiden name, Piper refused. This caught Alex off guard.

"Hi, Tina. Yeah, I took the rest of the day off!" Piper tried hard to fake happiness but she was sure Tina could see right through her.

"Okay just do the usual sign out and I'll go get him."

"Thank You!" Piper murmured while looking at her name 'Piper Vause' that she had just signed.

When Tina came back Parker was intently searching around for his mother and once he laid eyes on her, he squirmed around and reached until Piper grabbed him.

"Hi Buddy!" Piper kissed the small boy's temple and squeezed him in a hug.

"He's been kind of fussy today. He may just be tired, but I just wanted to give you a heads up."

Piper nodded and automatically felt guilty as she brushed his blonde hair away to look at his blue eyes. Parker had just turned two years old, but Piper felt that he sensed something was going on between his parents. There was no need in trying to explain to him what was going on because she knew he wouldn't understand but she still felt like she was to blame.

After arriving home from the daycare center, Piper retrieved a now sleeping Parker form his car seat and walked inside their home. Walking up the stairs and into the master bedroom, Piper laid Parker down on her bed, making sure pillows were surrounding him in case he rolled, and walked into the closet to change and double check that she packed all of Alex's things. Stepping up onto the step stool to look at the top shelf of the closet, Piper found a stray picture that had slipped from the photo album next to it. The photo album was labeled "Our Wedding."

Piper picked up the photo and felt her heart break into a million more pieces. In the photo, Alex and Piper had just said "I do" and were walking down the aisle. Both women had wide grins plastered on their face as they walked hand in hand. Piper shoved the photo back into the photo album and pushed it back as far as it could go to keep it out of her sight. There was no use in getting rid of all of their pictures, plus Piper couldn't bring herself to throw away ten years of memories. Parker was obsessed with looking at pictures of his parents and maybe one day when he understood what was going on, Piper would pull down that album, but her heart was too fragile and broken to look at it now.

Before Piper knew it, she heard the front door open and shut quietly. Alex's voice echoed up to the second floor. Piper wasn't about to ask Alex for her key to the house, it was in her name after all but Alex left everything to Piper so she could keep Parker in the same routine.

"Piper?" Alex called out looking into the kitchen and living room.

Walking into the house was like a foreign land now to Alex. It didn't feel like a home anymore. Her home anyways. Alex was particularly happy that she and Piper didn't endure a "Nasty Divorce", but the long discussions and paperwork that they sat at the dining room table sorting out was stressful enough. With Alex's line of work she missed multiple hearings and meetings with the judge, but Alex was secretly happy about this because she just wasn't ready to be divorced. The divorce should have been finalized two months ago but was finally pronounced final in mid-June.

Piper walked out of the bedroom but not before glancing at a still sleeping Parker. Placing her hands on the balcony, Piper peered down at Alex.

"Where is he?" Alex asked.

"He's sleeping in here." Piper motioned to the bedroom door. "If you want to come get him, I'll go get his bag."

"Okay."

Once Piper pushed off the balcony and walked down the hall to Parker's room, Alex began her descent upstairs towards her son. Alex wanted to avoid an argument or even a small disagreement at all costs, especially in front of their child. That was one thing they had easily agreed on, they would keep it professional in front of their child.

Alex pushed open the door and her eyes automatically fell onto her sleeping son. He was sprawled out on what used to be Alex's side of the bed with his head turned to the side. Not wanting to wake him, Alex walked into the closet where they kept extra throw blankets and grabbed one. Walking into the closet was like a slap in the face. Where her clothes and shoes used to be was blank and desolate. It made the closet look so much bigger than it actually was.

As she walked out of the closet, she bumped right into Piper.

"Shit. Sorry." Alex mumbled.

"What are you doing in there?"

"I don't want to wake him so I grabbed a blanket to cover him with when I pick him up. You don't mind me taking this one do you?"

Alex lifted the blanket in her hand.

"Oh, no. Go ahead. I'm gonna go put his bag next to the door." Piper briefly made eye contact with Alex and quickly looked away.

After Alex successfully picked her son up without waking him and placed his head on her shoulder, she made her way downstairs where she found Piper waiting by the door.

"I'll bring him back Sunday on my way to the airport. I have a flight at noon."

Piper rolled her eyes, which didn't go unnoticed by the other woman in the room.

"You told me this morning that you took the week off."

"Don't be like this in front of him." Alex shook her head. The look on Alex's face was one of pure hurt and heartbreak, the same it had been for the past eight months.

Ignoring the comment, Piper explained that everything he needed was in his backpack.

"I got it under control. I've done this before."

Not wanting to face Alex and her sarcasm any longer, Piper stepped forward to place a kiss on top of Parker's head and gently rubbed his back.

"Love you buddy."

The tension was thick in the room after the event that had happened a mere five hours ago. Neither woman knew how to bid farewell as they stood awkwardly staring at each other. It used to be a simple kiss but now it was just a memory.

"Bye." Alex murmured as she reached for the door knob, breaking her gaze from Piper's.

"Bye."

 **Later that night…**

Parker searched Alex's apartment high and low for Piper. Alex followed him fascinated at how much he seemed to grow every time she saw him. She made it a point to see him as much as she could when she was in town but since she and Piper had separated, it was like she was missing every milestone the boy had and deep down it tore her apart.

"Mommy?" Parker asked looking under the kitchen table.

"Mommy's at your house, bud."

It even hurt Alex to look at Parker. He was a spitting image of Piper. The blonde hair and the blue eyes. Even some of his mannerisms. Alex had been so excited to find out Piper was pregnant after they had tried invitro four times before it stuck. The idea of a child had seemed so perfect when Piper was traveling the world with Alex but as soon as he arrived, all of that went down the drain. Taking a child on a drug run was the last thing Alex wanted to do so that left no choice but to leave her then wife and child at home.

Alex's phone vibrated in her back pocket and saw she had a message from Nicky.

 **From Nicky:** **Has the little monster gone to bed? I was gonna come by with a six pack.**

As if on cue, Parker bumped his head underneath the kitchen table and began to wail.

Alex quickly replied.

 **To Nicky: He's about to. Give me 20 min.**

Shoving her phone into her back pocket she pulled him out from underneath the kitchen table and clutched him close to her chest while running a soothing hand over his head. The small boy rubbed his face into Alex's shoulder and whimpered.

"It's okay bud."

It took ten minutes for Parker to fall asleep. Alex figured it must have been a long day for him also. Quietly shutting the book she was reading to him, she cradled him in her arms and stared at his angelic face. A knock at the door broke her from her trance. Carefully placing Parker in his crib, she gently closed the door and walked down the hallway.

"It's about time you open the door!"

"Shut up, Nicky."

Alex was in no mood for banter.

Quickly taking note that her best friend was in no mood to kid around, Nicky walked past Alex and sat the six pack of beer on the coffee table in the living room.

Alex noisily sat down on the couch next to the wild haired woman and cracked open a can of beer

"Well, are you gonna ask me how my day went?" Alex asked sarcastically while laying her glasses on the coffee table.

Nicky hesitantly looked over at Alex with a knowing look. She didn't need an explanation of Alex's day to know how it went. It had been that way since they were kids.

"I'm fucking divorced." Alex let out a nervous chuckle before setting down the beer and burying her face in the palms of her hands.

"Let it all out sister." Nicky scooted over to rub her hand over across Alex's back. "It's all gonna work out."

"She was my wife." Alex quietly sobbed. "I loved her, I still do. This has been one of the worst fucking things I've had to do in my life."

Nicky didn't pull any punches or sugar coat anything she said.

"Well, Alex, you have to prioritize. What's more important? Your job or your family?"

Taking a swig of her beer, Alex leaned back into the couch.

"If this is how I'm gonna feel every day for the rest of my life, I don't know how I'm gonna survive."

"Don't say that shit, Vause. You have a perfect little boy in there that completely adores you," Nicky pointed down the hall. "You need to stay strong for him. If he sees his mother moping around, fucking depressed, how do you think that's gonna make him feel? He may only be two years old but he can sense things."

"I brought this onto myself and I doubt I can fix it." Alex whispered while staring blankly at the coffee table.

Surprised at Alex's admission, Nicky shrugged her shoulders and shook her head when Alex turned her towards her.

"Find a way, Vause."

 **A/N: I can't thank you guys enough for the response and feedback I've gotten from this. I feel this chapter is nothing but a filler but I have to lay down the pathway accordingly before I can rebuild the Vauseman relationship.**


	3. One Month Divorced

_**One Month Divorced**_

"Can you bring him to the country club? I told my parents I would have Sunday brunch with them and they want to see Parker."

Piper was nervously walking around the kitchen gathering her purse and keys before she set off for the country club. Alex had Parker for the weekend but Bill and Carol requested to see their grandson and Piper would rather deal with her ex-wife rather than upset her parents.

"Piper this is my weekend. I leave for two weeks in the morning, I have a right to see my son."

Piper was getting tired of Alex throwing all the legal terms into their conversations as if she could take away Parker. If Piper so chose to, she could have Alex thrown into prison in an instant for her deep involvement in the cartel, but she couldn't bring herself to do that and cause that much more of a mess. Plus, no matter how hard she fought herself, Piper still loved Alex.

"You can pick him up when we're done. All I'm asking is two hours and then you can have him back for the rest of the day."

Bill and Carol saw Parker much more than Alex did, but not wanting to deny her ex-in laws the right to see their only grandchild, Alex gave in. But then again, hasn't she always given in to Piper?

"What time do you want me to meet you there?"

Piper smugly grinned to herself knowing she still had a little bit of power in this co-parenting situation.

"Ten-thirty. And make sure he has nice clothes on please. No dinosaurs or sweat pants. I think I packed his Sperry's, so put him in those."

"Okay." Alex sighed.

* * *

Piper and Parker were sitting on the patio of the country club having brunch with Bill and Carol Chapman. Half the things that were coming out of Piper's parent's mouths, Piper wasn't paying attention to. She was more worried about Parker's incessant fussing rather than Carol asking if she had been on any dates or had any person in mind. In Piper's mind, she had no want to go on a date or even think about starting another relationship. Did her mother not understand that she was just declared divorced a little over a month ago?

When Alex and Piper got married, Bill had happily escorted his daughter down the aisle, but Carol sat in the back row as if it was an embarrassment to be there. To her it was. Bill and Alex's relationship had flourished when he saw the way she supported and loved his daughter. He was skeptical of how often the pair traveled the world but the thought soon vanished when he would receive pictures of the two happily smiling wherever they were. The idea of his daughter being in a same sex relationship was no problem for him as long as she was well taken care of. Carol on the other hand, still sent her the phone numbers of men with old money.

Upon hearing the news of the divorce, Bill's heart wept for Piper, but Carol, even though she sent her condolences, she was secretly relieved. Alex and Carol had stomached the visits for Piper, but you could tell there was tension between the two. More often than not when Piper requested a family lunch with Alex in tow, Carol came up with excuses for her to not have to attend. Since the divorce was finalized, Piper's mother hadn't missed one lunch.

"Are you doing alright, honey?" Bill asked reaching across the table to place his hand on top of Piper's. "You seem sort of distant."

"Yeah, daddy. I'm fine." Piper tried to fake the best smile she could.

"Is Alex paying the child support on time? Your father and I would have no hesitancy in lending you money for you and Parker."

This was the first non-selfish thing Carol had said all morning.

"She's getting it to me on time, but thank you."

Piper had never told her parents the actual results of the divorce. She led them to believe that the judge told Alex she was to pay child support and take him every weekend, but Piper had never told her parents what Alex actually did for a living so she had to fabricate that Alex actually just transferred money into her bank account and saw Parker two to three times a month. Parker's fussing and squirming about the high chair broke the adults from their conversation.

"What is it, babe?" Piper asked rubbing a maternal hand over his forehead and noting he was a tad bit warm. Whether the warmth was from the sun or if he had a fever was unknown. Picking up the toddler and sitting him across her legs, the boy leaned the side of his head against his mother's chest, calming at the closeness.

"Does my grandbaby not feel good?" Carol asked reaching across the table to touch his cheek. Parker pressed himself further into Piper's chest.

Just as Piper went to reply to her mother, her phone alerted her with a text message.

 **From Alex: I'm caught in traffic, I'm going to be a little late picking him up.**

 **To Alex: Can you pick him up at the house? We're about to leave. He's not feeling well.**

Alex quickly responded with a worried response but Piper decided against replying so she could leave quicker. Bill and Carol didn't seem too upset that their daughter and grandson were leaving so quickly but they understood that Parker's health was more important. Carol and Bill quickly kissed their grandchild goodbye after Bill had strapped him into his car seat and told Piper to call and update on how Parker was doing.

The whole way home, Parker fussed and squirmed about in his seat. Any time Piper would try to coerce him to tell her what was wrong, he refused and continued to whimper. By the time Piper pulled into the driveway, the small boy was in a full blown crying fest and the blonde woman didn't even notice that Alex had beat her to the house and was already walking up the driveway to get Parker out of the back of the BMW. As soon as Piper got out of the car and turned around to open the rear door, Alex was reaching for the handle. A part of Piper felt relieved that she had back up but another part of her was scared from how stealthily Alex had walked up the drive.

"Jesus Christ."

Alex slightly smirked and opened the back door. "What's wrong buddy?"

Parker was grasping at his left ear and Alex could faintly make out the word 'hurt' through his crying.

As soon as Piper unlocked the front door, she told Alex she was going to fetch the fever thermometer and the otoscope to look into Parkers ear. Alex sat down on the couch with him and pressed her cheek to his forehead. Noting that he was getting warmer, Alex cradled Parker just enough to wear she could untie his baby Sperry's and strip him of his clothes. Once he was down to just his diaper, Piper appeared in the living room and sat down next to Alex. Parker's cries were less violent but still very audible.

"Okay, buddy." Piper cooed as she ran the temporal thermometer gently across Parker's forehead to his temple. The thermometer read 100.8 degrees Fahrenheit.

Alex craned her neck to see the reading and quickly clutched Parker to her chest.

"My poor little guy."

Parker refused to let Piper look in his ear but when she caught a glimpse of his throat with the flashlight from her phone, she noticed his throat was covered in white spots.

"Shit."

"What?" Alex asked.

"He has spots on his tonsils."

Alex slowly threw her head back into the couch.

"How many fucking times is he going to get this a year?"

"Alex." Piper threw her a knowing look about using bad language in front of their son. "Can you run and get some children's Tylenol and I'll call and make him an appointment?"

It seemed like the poor little boy had strep throat or tonsillitis at least once a month. Alex and Piper noticed over the span of his life that he could be perfectly fine one minute and the next he was miserable.

"Yeah, I can do that." Alex stood up from the couch still cradling Parker. Piper reached her arms out to take him and when Alex removed her arm from the back of Parker's head, the back of her hand skimmed Piper's forearm. Automatically Piper felt the spark of electricity run through her body when her ex-wife touched her. That feeling had never seemed to go away. Every innocent brush of the hand when they were passing Parker off or handing something to each other over the past nine months, that spark had made its presence known. Piper hesitantly looked up at Alex and as she watched the raven haired woman run her hand through her hair.

"I'll be back in half an hour." Alex murmured reaching a hand down to touch Parker's head.

Piper had never once doubted the love Alex had for Parker. You could see the bond that the two had between them from the first time Alex held him. It killed Piper when Alex didn't make it in time for Parker's birth. When Alex arrived at the hospital, Piper was furious and Alex knew that, she would be too if she were in Piper's shoes, but the tall woman did everything in her power to make it up to Piper.

Alex left to go back to work three weeks after Parker was born, that alone was enough to send Piper completely off the edge. Piper had never seemed to understand how hard it was for Alex to leave her wife and child at home but she had no choice. Once Alex went back to traveling, Piper tried hard to get into a routine but being the only parent proved to be a difficult task with a newborn.

After Alex had left to run to the drug store, Piper got Parker a sippy cup from the kitchen and laid him on the couch to rest. As soon as she left his presence, he whined and whimpered until she laid down with him. Once she had successfully pried herself from the toddler's death grip after he fell asleep, the blonde woman made her way upstairs to change out of the attire she wore to the brunch. When Alex passed Parker to Piper, Piper observed that a month after the divorce, Alex still had her wedding ring on. Was she feeling guilty? Did she not want to let it go? Piper would never know, but it was odd to her that Alex, a woman who could have anyone pretty much, still had her wedding ring on. In all honesty, Piper thought that Alex would have ditched the ring and start having sex with random girls to cover up the pain she was feeling, but from the looks of it, she was doing quite the opposite.

Walking over to her jewelry box, Piper placed her hand on the knob to pull out the drawer that held her wedding ring, the small shiny object that once brought her so much joy, but now caused so much hurt. It took her a moment to pull out the drawer, but her body spoke for itself and before she knew it, she was holding the ring in her hand. As soon as Piper laid eyes on that two karat, princess cut diamond with the diamond encrusted band, the band that matched Alex's, a wave of heartache pulsed through her body.

 _It was a wintry Christmas Morning in New York as Piper and Alex sat curled up in front of the fire in their penthouse apartment. Most of the morning was spent in bed basking in the afterglow of their lovemaking that had lasted until early hours of the morning, but Alex persuaded Piper to finally get out of bed to go and unwrap presents. Alex had thought that it would be Piper who would be chomping at the bit to unwrap presents, but the blonde woman simply stated, "You're all I need." What Piper didn't know, was that one certain gift under the tree would make her statement come true forever._

 _Alex had picked out the ring four weeks before Christmas. As soon as she laid eyes on it, she knew it was the one for Piper. It basically screamed at her from the glass case to pick it for her (hopefully) soon to be fiancé. She had originally planned to propose to Piper in Cambodia on the beach but inclement weather cancelled that plan._

 _Keeping the ring hidden was a task of its own. Piper had something stashed in every nook and cranny of that apartment, so Alex had trusted Nicky enough to leave the ring at her house until Alex was ready for it. Piper and Alex had discussed marriage a few times before and the blonde woman insisted that she didn't need to get married, but deep down Alex knew it was ultimately what she wanted. Alex never pictured herself getting married, but all it takes is one person for that to change completely._

 _The pair had just finished opening what Piper thought was all the presents but little did she know. Alex casually asked her to go and get some coffee for the two of them and Piper happily obliged but not before kissing Alex multiple times._

 _As soon as Piper left the room, Alex's nerves went into overdrive. She felt like her heart was going to beat out of her chest. The raven haired woman stood up on her wobbly legs and reached for the black velvet box that was sitting on a limb towards the back of the tree and placed it in the pocket of her hoodie. Alex sat back down quickly when she heard Piper's footsteps approaching._

" _Thanks, babe."_

 _Alex kissed Piper's cheek as she sat back down next to her._

 _Keeping her hand in her pocket clutched around the little black box, Alex realized that she had never completely thought out how she would approach the subject. If she had proposed in Cambodia, she had it planned out to where the two would take a walk on the beach and she would propose but she had never thought about what she would do when she proposed in the apartment._

 _Deciding to just take the plunge, Alex grabbed Piper's hand and intertwined their fingers._

" _Did you have a good Christmas, Al?"_

 _This response was perfect for Alex's situation._

" _It will be perfect if you agree to something."_

 _Alex let go of Piper's hand and slowly went from her sitting position to kneeling on her knee, and reached inside her hoodie pocket. Quickly realizing what was happening, Piper grinned and placed a hand over her mouth to contain her excitement._

" _Babe." Piper whispered as a stray tear fell from the corner of her eye._

 _Alex grinned at Piper as she opened the velvet box to reveal the ring, and grabbed Piper's hand._

" _Piper, we've talked about this many many times and no matter how many times you tell me that we don't have to get married, I fail to believe it. I never believed in marriage until I met you and that says a lot."_

 _Piper chuckled and nodded her head._

" _You are my best friend. I love you more than life itself. You have been there for me through so many shitty situations and through so many joyful times. You show me that life has a meaning and I can't picture myself without you by my side. Everywhere I turn, I'm reminded of you and it makes me so fucking happy to wake up next to you every morning. You are the most beautiful person inside and out and I can't believe how incredibly lucky I am to have you."_

 _By now Alex had tears trailing down her face which caused Piper to cry even more._

 _Piper knew Alex was hesitant about speaking on spot but in Piper's eyes, Alex's speech was perfect._

" _SO, Piper Chapman, will you marry me?"_

 _Piper broke their connection and cupped Alex's face and looked her dead in the eyes._

" _Yes."_

 _Piper gently placed her lips on Alex's as they shared a tender kiss. After they broke apart, Alex removed the ring and placed it on Piper's ring finger, ecstatic that it was a perfect fit._

" _It's so beautiful." Piper admitted, mesmerized at how it looked on her finger._

 _Alex leaned down to capture Piper's lips in a kiss again and whispered, "I love you so fucking much."_

" _I love you too."_

"Piper?" Alex called out. She was right outside the bedroom door.

" _How did I not hear her come in?"_

"I'm in here!"

Quickly placing the ring on the island in the closet, she shut the door to the walk-in and saw Alex entering the bedroom with a grocery bag in hand.

"Hey, I got children's Tylenol, and some of those organic throat lozenges that you buy for him."

Piper looked down at Alex's left hand to make sure she didn't just think that she still had her wedding ring on but was proven correct that Alex did indeed still have her ring on.

"Thanks."

"Did you get him an appointment?"

Alex moved to set the bag down on the bed, taking note that Piper too had a picture of the three of them sitting on the night stand next to her side of the bed.

"Yes, at eleven-thirty in the morning."

Alex's eyes grew wide as she abruptly turned around to look at Piper.

"You can't get it any earlier? My flight is at noon."

Surprised that Alex was actually trying to be there instead of jetting off to wherever she had to go, Piper told her she would try to get his appointment for earlier. Usually Alex would just let Piper handle the medical issues and attend the doctor's appointments but something seemed to have changed.

Alex left soon after her conversation with Piper but not before kissing Parker and making sure Piper had everything she needed to take care of Parker.

* * *

 **Wednesday Morning…**

"Yeah, Pol. She sat through the whole appointment and didn't just leave right after."

Polly and Piper were sitting outside of the café next door to Popi have lunch after a successful business meeting earlier that morning.

"Do you think she's just trying to suck up so she can get you back?"

"I don't know, Pol. I mean she really does care about Parker."

Piper looked down at her phone as a text message from an unknown number popped up on the screen.

 **From Unknown: Hi, this is Benjamin.**

"Who is it?" Polly pried.

"Probably just another recruitment that my mother made."

Piper rolled her eyes and set her phone back down on the table.

"Besides, it would take more than her showing up to Parker's appointments for me to even consider trying to work things out."

"Aha! So you WOULD take her back!" Polly pointed her fork at Piper.

Piper shook her head.

"I never said that. I desperately tried to hold onto our marriage but she won't leave the one thing that she thought was more important than her wife and child."

Polly kept her mouth shut with this statement.

"Can I tell you something?"

The short brown haired woman nodded.

"She still has her wedding ring on."

"She's probably feeling guilty. I would feel guilty too if I threw away Pete and Finn for drugs."

Feeling her temper growing, Piper shot her best friend a look and quickly replied, "She doesn't do drugs, Pol."

Shrugging her shoulders, Polly grabbed the check, paid as a silent truce, and didn't say a word more about Alex. Polly knew that Piper missed Alex even though she wouldn't admit it, but in her opinion, Piper deserved someone better than Alex.

* * *

Across the ocean, Alex sat nervously in Kubra's living room of his Paris apartment waiting to speak to him.

 **A/N: Slowly but surely…Let me know what you think.**

 **All mistakes are my fault. I had no patience to go through and look for errors. Been battling the stomach flu.**

 **Thanks again for all the great reviews!**


	4. A Family Emergency

**You might need tissues, I'm not sure. Enjoy.**

 _ **Family Emergency**_

Alex sat in Kubra's extravagant penthouse apartment with the perfect view of the Eifel Tower, waiting for the boss himself to wrap up his phone call. This was the moment the raven haired woman had been mustering up the confidence for, for months. She wanted out. She wanted her wife back. But ultimately she wanted her family happily together again. Alex started to get where she couldn't deal with only seeing her son less than three times a month. On top of that, Alex rarely slept more six hours a night and found herself looking at the countless pictures and videos of what used to be her perfect little family. More importantly, only seeing Parker a limited amount of times meant there was less of a chance to try and begin a reconciliation process with Piper. If Piper even wanted that.

Alex was spinning her wedding band around and around on her finger, a nervous habit she had formed, when Kubra entered the living room.

"Alex!" The man greeted in his heavy accent with his arms stretched out beside him.

Alex nervously grinned up at the man.

Kubra leaned down to kiss both of Alex's cheeks before he sat down in the oversized chair directly across from her.

"How can I help you? Do you need more money or mules? I have no problem arranging something for you."

"Uh, no actually. Everything's great from that aspect."

Kubra nodded eagerly.

Alex could feel the bile rising in her throat from how nervous she was about telling the man she wanted out. This man could have her killed or make her life a living hell in an instant, but she was willing to risk her life to get her family whom she loved more than anyone else, back in her life. At least she would die knowing she did everything she could.

The once arrogant woman now felt like the smallest person in the world under the gaze of this man. She couldn't bring herself to tell this man that she desperately wanted to leave the cartel to attempt repair her broken family.

As Alex went to open her mouth, a vibrating sensation ran up her thigh. Realizing it was her phone ringing, Alex pulled out her phone and noticed that it was Piper. Piper never called unless it was the nightly Facetime with Parker. Noting that it wasn't time for the video call, Alex opted to take the phone call.

"I have to take this."

Kubra nodded his head once as Alex stepped out into the hall.

"Hello?"

"Alex, I'm sorry if I interrupted anything." Piper paused. "But it's Parker."

"What's going on? Is he okay?"

Alex's heart began to beat a little faster.

"Piper. Tell me what's going on."

Alex started fumbling around for her phone wanting to call a cab back to her hotel room but quickly remembered she was currently using it.

"I'm sitting in the ER with our son."

"Our", Piper hadn't used the word "our" in any conversation they had engaged in, in over ten months. It brought a small hint of joy to Alex's heart but it quickly dissipated as she comprehended what Piper had said.

"What? Why?"

Alex started to pace up and down the hallway that was adorned with pictures of Kubra's travels over the years. At the end of the hallway on a table, proudly on display for everyone who walked in the apartment, was a picture of herself, Kubra, Farhi, and Aydin at the last business party they had a year ago. They had just expanded the business to ten more countries and received healthy bonuses. Life was good. Alex thought her life was perfect. She had the perfect wife, the most adorable son, and a great job. Two weeks later was when Piper dropped the bomb.

"The antibiotics he's on for his strep throat had a negative reaction…"

Alex could practically hear Piper's tough, motherly façade fading.

"Can you come home please?" Piper began to cry. "They want to do surgery to remove his tonsils sometime tonight because they think they're blocking his airway."

Piper sniffled.

"He doesn't deserve this…He's so small, Al…"

Alex's heart felt like it dropped to the floor hearing the news of her son and hearing Piper cry. She didn't even register that her ex-wife had used her nickname for her.

"I'll be on the first flight out."

"And Piper." Alex continued. "It's gonna be okay."

Alex quickly left Kubra's apartment but not after filling him in on what was happening. Surprisingly, he insisted that Alex go be with her son. She wasn't sure if he was being nice because the cartel was booming or he was developing a soft side for her since he had seen how detrimental the past year had been on her. Alex was hoping it was the latter so telling him she wanted out would go a little more smoothly, but she had her doubts.

Making a mental note that the next time she was in Kubra's presence, she would address the conflict, but now her mind was set on getting to Parker and Piper.

Luckily, Alex was able to get a flight out an hour after she left Kubra's apartment. The flight back to New York felt just as it had when she was trying to make it home for Parker's arrival into the world, agonizingly long. She couldn't even eat the shitty airplane food because she was sick to her stomach thinking about the pain Parker must be in and how scared Piper must be. The airplane had to circle around the JFK airport for thirty minutes due to too many planes on the runway and this was enough for Alex to jump off the plane if it meant getting to her family faster.

Once the airplane had landed and she turned on her phone, she was greeted with three text messages from Piper.

 **From Piper: They're taking him back in an hour.**

 **From Piper: Thirty minutes until they take him back..**

 **From Piper: Please make it here…**

Noting that Piper had sent the last two texts consecutively five minutes ago, Alex sprinted to find a cab.

* * *

It had all happened in an instant.

The moment Piper had arrived back at Popi with Polly after lunch, the daycare had called her saying that Parker was having trouble breathing and they were calling an ambulance.

Piper's mind went into overdrive. One moment she was running down the hall yelling at Polly that she had to go. She didn't even remember driving to the hospital to meet the ambulance, it all happened so fast.

Just that morning she had seen Parker, he was all smiles and giggles. He had seemed to be feeling much better than he had on Sunday. The small boy had even taken his medicine on the first try. Piper didn't have to bribe him.

On the way to daycare that morning he had been quiet and content as he watched Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on the built in DVD player. Grinning wide as Piper would turn around and smile at him or reach back and jiggle his foot. There weren't even any tears as Piper kissed him goodbye. She watched him toddle to the blocks and begin to build with one of his classmates.

He seemed perfectly fine.

Parker was a mess screaming for his mommy and gasping for air when Piper got to the Emergency Room. Seeing her little boy so scared was terrifying but she willed herself to keep it together for him. After the nurses had successfully inserted his IV and confirmed he couldn't pull it out again, she was finally left alone with her boy. His sobs and cries had turned into little whimpers as she laid on the tiny stretcher stroking his face and holding him close.

Once the doctor had come in to confirm what he had suspected, Parker was wheeled to the Pediatric ward to be observed and would stay there until further notice. Nothing broke Piper's heart more than seeing how helpless and small Parker looked in that hospital bed.

How could a small antibiotic cause such a dramatic reaction?

Piper was dozing off to a restless sleep when the doctor came through to check on Parker before he clocked out for the night. He informed Piper that Parker was to have his tonsils taken out later that night to further help his breathing and so that it would hopefully reduce the amount of times Parker was sick per year. This information hit Piper like a bus. She automatically felt guilty even though freak things like this happen to children all the time. After discussing who would take out Parkers tonsils, Piper realized she couldn't do this on her own and needed to have Alex here. Piper decided that Parker would have his tonsils out later that night since the doctor was confident that he would be perfectly fine until then.

Her mind started to race as she began to scroll through her contacts until she fell on Alex's. Piper was hesitant in calling her because she knew how crazy the schedule could be for the cartel but quickly decided this was more important than drugs or drug money. This was her son.

Piper felt a wave of relief wash over her when Alex answered the phone. Quickly checking to make sure he son was still sleeping, Piper slipped out into the hall and cracked the door open just enough to where she could still see Parker.

Just as she suspected, Alex freaked out and this made Piper finally break down into the pile of mush she had been putting off for hours. She felt she had put Alex through so much already this year but she needed her right now. She couldn't deal with the situation her son was in by herself. Hearing Alex's voice was calming enough but Piper wouldn't be completely at ease until Alex was standing beside her in this hospital.

After getting off the phone with Alex, Piper dried her eyes with her sleeve and walked back into her son's room and resumed her position next to the bed clutching his tiny hand.

The hours in between when Piper had called Alex and the time the nurses came in to notify Piper that the doctor had arrived and would be ready to begin the operation in an hour, seemed to fly by. Piper looked at her phone and remembered she had called Alex a little under seven hours ago. Feeling her anxiety begin to build in her chest, she texted Alex the update on when Parker would go in and hoped to God she saw it when she got off the plane. Knowing her she would sprint through the airport to a cab and never look at her phone.

When the anesthesiologist came into have Piper fill out forms and educate her on what kind of anesthesia Parker would be given, she started to panic because she still hadn't seen or heard from Alex. After the anesthesiologist had left, Piper shot Alex another text and another one soon after that.

Piper's leg must have bounced up and down a million times as the time ticked down to when Parker went back to have his operation done. The blonde woman knew she was overreacting to such a simple surgery that would take less than half an hour, but the day as a whole obliterated her nerves.

There was no sign of Alex as the nurses came in to wheel Parker out. Piper began to gather the confidence to send her son off without any tears. If she could just hold on for five more minutes, she could go to restroom and cry it out.

As Piper stood up from kissing Parker's cheek she could faintly hear that husky voice down at the nurses station demanding to know where her son was. All it took was a glance down the hall to see Alex turn her head to scan the names on the rooms nearest to her. The pair automatically made eye contact. Alex was in a full on sprint before she stopped at Parker's side and quickly bent down to kiss him and tell him both of his mom's would be there when he woke up. Alex could see the tears welling up in his eyes. He didn't understand what was going on and Alex wished she could take his place.

Meanwhile, Piper stood on the other side of Parker staring at her ex-wife, mesmerized that she was there.

The moment the operating room door closed, Parker began to scream and it took all of Alex's strength to keep Piper from bursting through the door. Not a minute later Parker's screams had completely ceased. Piper was in a full on breakdown as she slumped into Alex and buried her head in to her shoulder. Alex was already counting down the minutes of this surgery so maybe Piper would ease up some.

The tall woman was whispering comfortingly into Piper's ear that everything would be okay as she held her as tight against her body as she could. Alex wasn't even thinking much of the hug, all she cared about was comforting Piper and being there for her. Alex knew that Piper held everything in and once she reached her breaking point, it all came out at once. There was another time and place for being happy that they hugged for the first time in ten months. Piper's cries were on the verge of violent. Alex could feel her gasping for air as she rubbed her back.

Piper was the one who broke the hug, but quickly grasped Alex's hand and led her to the waiting room. Never once did Piper let go of Alex's hand. Not even after the doctor had come out of the operating room to say that Parker did fantastic and that they could see him in thirty to forty five minutes.

Piper simply looked down at their intertwined fingers and up at Alex who was staring blankly at the wall in front of her and laid her head down on the raven haired woman's shoulder as a silent thank you.

* * *

Parker did alright through the night. Alex made many trips to the nurse's station requesting more ice cream. She had even gotten Parker to smile a time or two when he wasn't dozing from the anesthesia that hadn't worn off or pain medicine. Piper's mood had enhanced greatly after she was able to see her baby and cradle him in her arms.

Alex had opted to sleep on the hard, plastic couch so Piper could be close to her son. Alex knew she and Piper weren't going to sleep but she wasn't going to leave their side.

Sometime in the middle of the night after Parker had fallen asleep, Alex had whispered breaking Piper away from the mindless scrolling she was doing on her social media.

"Do you need anything? I'm going to get some coffee from the lounge."

"I'll take some coffee, please. Thanks."

Alex nodded and quietly left the room.

Piper sat down her phone on the rolling table and gently kissed Parker's forehead. She began to think about what she would have done if Alex wouldn't have been able to make it. Piper couldn't have done it alone.

Maybe what Polly said was true, Alex was trying to suck up, but Piper felt like this was something different. Something good.

"Here you go."

Alex's voice broke Piper from her thoughts.

Piper thanked her and watched Alex as she sat back down on the couch, pushed her glasses to the top of her head, and leaned her head back into the wall shutting her eyes.

* * *

The next morning when the doctor came by, he informed the pair that Parker was doing extremely well and would most likely be able to go home later that night but recommend that they stay close to the hospital for twenty fours hours if possible in case Parker had another reaction to something.

Piper started to search her brain for who she knew that lived near the hospital but Alex quickly responded.

"I live a few blocks from here on the Upper West Side."

Piper's eyes went wide as she looked at Alex. Alex shot her a look knowing all too well what she was thinking.

"That's perfect. I don't suspect anything is going to cause a reaction after running the tests we did, but it's better to be safe than sorry."

The doctor smiled and left the room.

"You don't need to be doing all of this by yourself. Let me help you. He's my son too."

"You were just on a plane for eight hours and you haven't even slept, Alex."

"Piper, please let me help you." Alex's face was drained and it was clear she didn't want to go around and around.

Piper opened her mouth to argue the statement but quickly realized that she also hadn't slept in thirty six hours, and desperately wanted a pair of extra hands. Sure this was probably going to be an awkward situation, but Piper reminded herself that it was only for twenty four hours and then she could take Parker home for a few days and if he was feeling okay, Alex could have him for a few days.

Piper simply nodded and slipped into the restroom.

Alex stroked Parker's hair as he looked up at her and placed his hand on her cheek. The brunette bent down to kiss his nose and then his forehead.

"I'm trying, buddy." Alex whispered.

 **A/N: I'm sorry if any of the medical part of this is incorrect. I'm not a medical student but I can assure you that a tonsillectomy is normal for young children. It's actually better to get them out when you're younger than when you are in your teens or older. Fun Fact.**

 **Happy-ish Vauseman to come in the next chapter. That'll give you something to look forward to.**

 **You guys give me the motivation to keep writing with all the wonderful reviews and PM's so thank you very much for that.**

 **I'd love to hear your thoughts.**


	5. Specks of Hope

**Thanks for all the reviews, follows, and favorites. I never expected this story to be so intriguing.**

 _ **Specks of Hope**_

The drive to Alex's apartment was quiet and awkward to say the very least. Alex had opted to drive simply because she knew how to get to her apartment and she could tell by one look at Piper's face that she was exhausted and on the brink of losing her sanity. Piper's hands were fidgeting and Alex so desperately wanted to reach across the center console and grab it like she used to, but not knowing where Piper stood after her breakdown outside the operating room and never letting go of her hand in the waiting room, she refrained.

Alex glanced into the rear view mirror to check on their son. He was slumped to the side of his car seat looking so tired and helpless clutching his stuffed puppy that Alex had gotten him from the gift store that morning. The only thing that Alex wished for in that moment was to take away the pain Parker was in and put back the smile that was almost always on his face.

When they stopped at a stoplight Alex reached back to rub a hand up and down Parker's leg.

"Are you okay buddy? We're almost home."

Parker just looked at Alex with those puppy dog eyes that he surely inherited from Piper and slightly shook his head up and down.

Alex returned her attention back to the front and glanced over at Piper. She had been quiet the whole ride home, turning around every time she heard Parker move. The past twenty four hours had drained her emotionally and physically, and Alex knew that.

"What about you? Are you okay?"

Piper turned her head to look at Alex and smiled the smallest smile.

"Just tired."

Alex nodded as she pulled into the underground garage of her apartment.

"Me too."

* * *

The entire elevator ride up to Alex's apartment, Piper felt like she was going to be sick. This unsettling feeling of being in her ex-wife's apartment with their child, together, just felt so different. She hadn't shared anything with Alex in months. It was like she was going to have to relearn how to live with someone all over again. Yes, she was ecstatic that Alex had made it to the hospital and she was willing to help out with Parker, but there was something missing.

Billions of questions were swirling around Piper's head about how the next twenty four hours would go. Would she and Alex end up in a screaming match? Would Alex stay quiet and leave them be until Piper needed a break? Would they have an adult conversation that was about something other than Parker?

With Parker on her hip, Alex unlocked her door and moved aside to let Piper in first. The first thing Piper noticed was how homely it felt. Just being in the apartment lifted Piper's spirits a little higher.

Parker's toys were strung about the living room just like they were at the house. Alex had pictures of the three of them scattered about the living room and the hallway from what she could see. The sound of Alex's husky voice drew Piper from her observations.

"I'm gonna go lay him down in his room and I'll be back so we can sort out how this is gonna work. Okay?"

Piper leaned in to kiss Parker's temple and watched Alex carry their boy down the long hallway and disappear into his room. As she continued to look around the room, her eyes fell on a picture of just her and Alex. In the picture Piper's hair was much longer than it was now, and Alex still had the blue streaks in her. They were standing on the beach of Cambodia. The pair was standing with their fronts tightly pressed together and Piper was smiling into the camera as Alex planted a kiss on Piper's cheek. It was the very first time Alex had taken Piper on one of her business trips and Piper was on an adrenaline rush from how culturally beautiful Cambodia was. The picture was slightly hidden between two larger ones but the fact that Alex still had a picture of them up without Parker in it, spoke volumes.

Slowly Piper was beginning to piece the puzzle together but she knew that Alex held the piece that would complete it; leaving the cartel.

"I've always liked that picture for the sunset and the waves behind us."

Piper was caught. She hadn't even heard Alex come up behind her. The blonde woman didn't know if it was from how delirious she felt from the lack of sleep or the past twenty four hours as a whole, but what came out of her mouth surprised herself.

"You don't have to lie, Al. I've always liked that picture too. It's when we were happiest."

Alex's eyes went wide but a slight smirk formed as she could see the back of Piper's ears going red at her admission. She didn't even need Piper to turn around to know the exact shade of red her face was. Deciding to keep the banter at a minimum, Alex noted to add that to her list of breakthroughs with Piper.

"Okay, so I kind of didn't think this whole sleeping situation through."

Piper slowly turned around, hoping the blushing was now unnoticeable.

"Okay?"

"Parker has his room and I have my room. What's supposed to be the guest room is my office." Alex exhaled slowly as everything in her mind came tumbling down, finally realizing how awkward this was going to be. "I can sleep on the couch and you can take my room, or."

Piper cut Alex off.

"I'll just sleep on the couch, it's only for one night. I'll be fine."

"Piper, you haven't slept and you look exhausted. I know you're thinking this is awkward because we're divorced and all, but please take my bed."

There it was, Alex had said that word. Piper was indeed feeling the awkwardness of the situation but she knew if she even laid a finger on Alex's bed, her resolve would disintegrate that much more than it already was.

"You don't deserve to sleep on a couch after dealing with all of this."

"Alex, you've been on a plane more this week than you've been on level ground, I'm sure you want your own bed. I'll be okay."

Alex took a step closer to the shorter blonde woman. The way the moonlight from the balcony was reflecting off of Alex's face proved to Piper that Alex was just as exhausted as she was, and maybe even a little more.

"Please just take the bed. I'm probably not going to sleep anyways because I'm afraid he's gonna wake up in pain."

When Alex was home those three weeks after Parker was born, Piper was sure she slept an hour a night because every little move or noise Parker made, Alex rushed to make sure he was okay. This was convincing enough for Piper but she knew sleeping in Alex's bed would spark something she wasn't sure she was ready for.

Piper could find no feasible way around the situation so she finally gave in. She figured that if she could sleep for a few hours, then she could tell Alex to take a break and things would be well on their way. Pleased, Alex escorted her down the hallway into her bedroom and showed her where the towels were in the master bathroom if she wanted to shower. After a quick grab of the elbow and a simple goodnight from Alex as went to exit the room, Piper was left alone.

After a quick shower and checking on Parker, the blonde woman walked down the hallway and heard Alex quietly talking on the phone in her office. Figuring that it was a business call, Piper swiftly turned around to go back to Alex's bedroom but stopped dead in her tracks when she heard those three words come from her ex-wife's mouth, "I want out." Stepping a little bit further towards the door, Piper could see inside the room through the small gap from the door and the frame. Alex was sitting with her back to the door hovering over laptop. Her hair was up in a messy bun and her glasses were perched atop her head. Piper tried to listen carefully but all she could make out was the word family being used in practically every sentence.

The blonde woman knew Alex was trying, she wouldn't have made the effort to come back in time for Parker's surgery if she wasn't. From one aspect, Piper regretted putting Alex through the past ten months, but it was the only way Piper could think of to get the point across that Alex had to pick, the cartel or her family. Piper could have easily just taken Parker and left for a little while but that wasn't drastic enough to get the point through Alex's stubborn head. Alex had thought everything was perfect but Piper had blindsided Alex with the divorce. She tried for months to save her marriage from crumbling, but she'd had enough. She was seeing the gardener more than her wife but at the time, Alex didn't see the irony in that. Alex thought that if the gardener was there a lot, it meant that her house looked the best on the block.

Feeling hopeful, Piper walked back down the hall and gently shut Alex's bedroom door. Swallowing her pride, Piper walked around the side of the bed, glanced at the photo on Alex's bed side table, and climbed in. As soon as her head hit the pillow her senses were filled with Alex. It was like her senses were dead but brought back to life with one simple inhale. Piper buried her head in the pillows taking in the scent of Alex, one she had missed for ten months. Before she knew it, she was sleeping peacefully.

* * *

After making sure that Piper got settled in, Alex had one motive; Call Kubra. Yes, calling him was the easy way out instead of meeting him face to face, but the past twenty four hours had made her realize how much more her family was worth than the cartel. If she had to spend the next two years scrubbing his toilets, she would if it meant that her family was together and happy.

Realizing it was almost midnight, Alex knew that it would be morning in Paris so she checked on Parker one more time before going into her office to make the call. Her little boy hadn't moved from the position she laid him in when they got home, that's how tired he was. She could see his little chest slowly moving up and down as he slept. Bending down over the rails of the crib, Alex gently pressed her lips to his cheek and whispered that she loved him. Quietly shutting the door, Alex walked the few feet to her bedroom door and pressed her ear against it. Hearing the sound of the water running from the shower, Alex walked down the hall to her office.

Cracking the door enough to where she could hear if Parker cried out, Alex sat down at her desk and pulled up Kubra's contact in her phone. The raven haired woman had never been so nervous in her life. She hadn't even been this nervous when she and Piper got married. Not wanting to drag this out any longer, Alex took a looked at the photo of Parker she kept on her desk, took a deep breath and pressed the call icon.

It rang three times before Kubra finally picked up.

"Alex! How's your son? I was just thinking of calling you when it wasn't so late in New York."

Alex was surprised that Kubra even remembered why she had left so abruptly. Many times he would feign sympathy but then grow angry that his employees weren't making him money.

"He's doing alright…Just tired, I think."

"Good, good." Kubra paused for a moment. "Listen, there's something I've been meaning to talk to you about."

The brunette began pulling up emails with drop off and pick up times along with the locations, worried she had fucked something up.

"Okay?"

Her eyes quickly scanned over the emails but found nothing. She had met all the deadlines for everything.

"I know this past year has been tough on you. You tell me constantly that you're okay, but I see it differently. You're not happy, and you haven't been for a while now."

Alex sighed into the phone, "No, I haven't been happy. I barely see my son and if there's even a chance at reconciliation with Piper, I have no time to devote to it."

"Tell me how you really feel, Alex." Kubra said in his thick accent.

Alex was thoroughly surprised that Kubra hadn't raised his voice and was letting Alex tell him her feelings. More often than not, Kubra had barely any sympathy. He wouldn't hesitate to take out someone who looked at him with an odd face. Perhaps he was being sympathetic because she had been loyal to him and always got what needed to be done, done.

With a lump in her throat, Alex whispered, "I want out, Kubra. I have been nothing but loyal to you and this business for the past fifteen years. I miss my family."

Alex held the phone away from her ear because she thought she heard a floorboard creak in the hall, but quickly dismissed it.

With a small sigh, Kubra replied, "Come back to my apartment next week, and we'll talk. For now, take care of your boy, and be nice to his mother. It'd be ashamed if she took him away."

Cringing at the sub meaning of Kubra's last sentence Alex quickly told him she would be there and hung up. She laid her head down in the crook of her arm on her desk and stayed that way until the wave of nausea left and her heart beat returned to normal.

After several minutes, Parker's cries could be heard and Alex stood up still feeling sick, but briskly walked to the toddler's room. When she opened his door, she found Parker standing up in his crib holding onto the railing as he cried for his mama. His blonde hair was ruffled in the back and his blue eyes were full of tears as he reached out for Alex.

"What is it, bud?" Alex asked him as she picked him up and set him on her hip. His cries automatically lessened as he rubbed his face into her shoulder. Remembering that it was probably time for another round of pain meds, she walked out of his room but not without noticing that Piper hadn't even woken up. Smirking, Alex took Parker to the kitchen.

* * *

Piper woke up to Alex brushing her teeth at the sink in the bathroom of the master suite. Looking to her right, the blonde haired woman made sure nothing had happened but found the bed the exact way it was when she fell asleep. Piper laid back and admired Alex from the back. Her silky black hair fell down to the middle of her back. Her back looked more muscular than usual in her white v-neck. Her long legs stretched for miles in her black sweats. Remembering what she had heard Alex say in the middle of the night, Piper got an overwhelming urge to hug Alex.

The moment she threw the covers back, Alex finished brushing her teeth and grabbed the mouthwash. Piper quickly removed herself from the bed and quietly tried to walk up behind Alex but the other woman saw the blondes' reflection in the mirror.

Quickly spitting the mouthwash out, Alex spoke up.

"Shit, did I wake you?"

Piper shook her head as she continued to walk across the room and into the bathroom.

"Parker would only take his medicine if I took it with him so I took some Nyquil so maybe I can sleep for a little bit and that shit is disgusting."

Closing in on Alex who still hadn't turned around, Piper chuckled.

"Is Parker asleep?"

"Yeah, he woke up once..."

Alex was cut off by Piper's arms wrapping around her from behind. She could feel Piper's head in between her shoulder blades. Not knowing where this random act of affection was coming from, Alex wanted to make the most of it and turned herself around in Piper's grasp. Wrapping her arms tightly around the shorter woman's frame, she felt Piper bury her head in her neck.

After a few seconds, Piper whispered, "Thank You."

"For what?" Alex asked placing her cheek on top of Piper's head.

"For being there."

Piper felt Alex nod her head and grip her a little tighter.

* * *

The rest of the stay went smoothly, Alex even found her and Piper laughing about small things with the occasional banter. Alex also noticed that Piper would innocently brush past her or place her hand on the small of her back as she passed by her. It felt as if this was a preview of what was to come if she successfully made it out of the cartel and fully settled the differences between herself and Piper.

Parker actually laughed at something Piper funny did in hopes to get him to laugh for the first time in nearly forty-eight hours and it was music to her and Alex's ears. His personality was even starting to reappear as the hours passed.

As Piper and Parker got ready to leave, as much as they both hated to after spending a successful day with Alex, Piper snuck in one more brief hug with Alex in the kitchen. Alex planted kisses all over Parker's face and watched the pair walk down the hallway to the elevator and didn't return back to her apartment until the elevator doors closed.

Alex had four days left in town before she was to return to Paris to talk to Kubra and she willed herself to stay busy so she could keep her mind off the subject.

Little did she know that Piper had heard part of her phone conversation with Kubra.

* * *

 **Two days later…**

Polly had dropped by Piper's house Sunday morning to see Parker, but ultimately to hear about the stay with Alex. Piper and Polly were sitting in the living room watching a five year old Finn attempt to teach Parker Candy Land, but Parker was more interested in knocking over the place markers on the board. Piper had also been texting Alex, all morning but was trying to keep this hidden from Polly. The texts had started out about Piper but evolved into a casual conversation.

"So it wasn't awful? I would've figured you pulled each other's hair out."

"It's like I've told you before Pol, it wasn't like I fell out of love with her, I still do love her, it was just she thought working was more important than her family. Something had to change."

"I don't know Pipes. What if she knew you were standing outside the door and she said that just to see what would happen? She is manipulative you know."

Piper's phone went off, signaling another text from Alex. Noting that they're conversation was basically dead, Piper took a leap of faith.

 **To Alex: Will you join Parker and I for dinner at our house tonight before you take him back to your place?**

Looking down at Parker who was starting to get fussy, Piper turned her head and looked Polly in the face.

"Polly, I want things to work."

Alex quickly responded.

 **From Alex: I'd love to.**

 **A/N: I hope this twenty four hours was interesting enough!**

 **There's still things that Piper and Alex need to hash out before we get to complete Happy Vauseman, but I promise it's coming soon.**


	6. Last Piece of the Puzzle

**Slight change, the family dinner is the night before Alex leaves for Paris for her talk with Kubra. I figured it would hold a little more meaning, having one more dinner with Alex before she finds out Kubra's decision.**

 _ **Last Piece of the Puzzle**_

"Parker." Piper hummed as she searched her closet for an outfit to wear for dinner. "What are you doing, babe?" The toddler was being extra quiet, usually meaning he was getting into something he wasn't supposed to.

The blonde woman had tried on multiple outfits for the simple at home, family dinner she had invited Alex to earlier that morning. She wasn't sure if she was nervous about being around her ex-wife in a normal setting rather than the pediatric ward of a hospital, or excited that Alex could insert that crucial piece of the puzzle after hearing her phone conversation with Kubra.

The past few days had proven to both women that their love for each other was still there but in order to rekindle that love, they needed to have a sit down and lay all of their cards on the table. Piper had spent a lot of time blaming herself for causing her family such a destructive year, but without this year, where would her family be now? Just thinking of how much more damaged her family would be if she hadn't of filed for divorce, Piper shuddered.

Piper settled on a simple black v-neck and jean shorts. Nothing too flashy but not too dull. Stepping out of the closet, Piper's eyes immediately fell on Parker's feet sticking out from under the bed. It was apparent from his grunts and his little feet kicking that he was trying to grab something.

Giggling to herself, Piper asked,

"What are you doing, sir?"

She could barely hear Parker's muffled babble from under the bed.

Grabbing him by the ankles, Piper carefully drug him out and noticed he was clutching one of Alex's old Def Leppard t-shirts.

"Mama!" Parker squealed as he ruffled the shirt.

"I'm excited to see mama too." Piper whispered into her son's ear as she picked him up from the floor.

Piper was excited but hesitant to see Alex, but she knew she had to take this first step to get where she wanted, and that was to be a family again.

* * *

As soon as Parker heard the doorbell signifying that his mother was there, he ran from the kitchen where he was clinging to Piper's leg as she hovered over the stove and started to whine when he couldn't reach the doorknob to let Alex in. Piper picked up the small boy, situated herself before opening the door, and when she did she was greeted with a smiling Alex holding a bouquet of roses. Trying to break the ice, Piper grinned right back.

"You know you have a key right?"

Alex threw Piper a knowing smirk.

"You invited me, I didn't just want to barge in."

Piper took the roses from Alex so she could take their son who was practically begging for her attention and followed the pair into the kitchen. The blonde woman knew that Parker missed Alex, you could see it by the way he would light up anytime the front door opened or when Piper walked in his room to retrieve him in the mornings. His tiny façade would falter just a little bit when he saw that it wasn't Alex.

Watching Alex with their son was so heartwarming to Piper. You could see the love she had for him clearly in her emerald green eyes. Ever since the little boy was born, she always made she he was okay. Even when she was thousands of miles away, she constantly asked how he was and if he was behaving. Piper had never thought Alex would be a mother, or a wife for that matter. The blonde woman had eventually convinced herself around their three year anniversary that she was basically going to be Alex's girlfriend for the rest of her life, but that all changed on that one Christmas morning.

Halfway through the family dinner, that was going exceptionally well, Parker fell asleep in his high chair, leaving the two women without their buffer. Parker served as the reason to not get angry with each other or bring up topics that could potentially cause havoc. Piper internally cursed herself for not making the boy take a nap, but decided she was mature enough to handle having her ex-wife over for dinner without their two year old son as a safety net. She knew she would eventually be in multiple situations without her son if she chose to continue rekindling her marriage, and she never doubted that decision for a second.

After their conversation on how Polly and Pete were doing, Piper asked Alex what her plans were for the week even though she already knew. Piper was trying to gauge the response, trying to see if Alex really was trying to get her life prioritized.

"I'm actually leaving for Paris again on tomorrow, and hopefully if all goes well, I'll be back by Thursday at the latest."

Alex was avoiding making eye contact with the blonde woman, and busied herself by standing up and grabbing Piper's plate to take to the sink. Piper smirked, knowing she was on to something.

"That's a short trip compared to others you've taken. Is it just a failed drop off or a meeting?"

Right as Piper started her sentence, Alex had turned on the sink faucet.

"What did you say, Pipes?"

Noting that the older woman had called her by her nickname for the first time, Piper smiled to herself forgetting what she was even talking to the brunette about. It was crazy to her that a simple nickname, a certain look, or a brush of the arm against her skin from the tall woman could cause her senses to go into overdrive. The rush of adrenaline was so intoxicating, it was like Piper forgot she even divorced this woman.

Piper replied when Alex turned off the faucet and was drying her hands.

"I said thank you for coming. Maybe we could make it a weekly thing?"

Piper really wanted to say nightly, but the time for that would come soon enough if she had her way. In some ways, the blonde woman felt stupid for trying to reassemble her relationship with Alex such a short time after the divorce was finalized, but every day she reminded herself that if it wasn't for the divorce, she would probably be sitting in this dining room with Parker by herself while Alex was flying around the world without a clue of the emotional state Piper was in.

Alex fidgeted with her glasses, hoping it would cover the blush she felt explode over her cheeks. It blew her away that a simple sentence from the younger woman had that effect on her.

Alex shrugged while taking a step towards the blonde who was now sitting on the island directly behind the sink. "I care about you guys."

Feeling the smile grow on her face, Piper reached out for Alex's hand, pulled the woman between her legs, and wrapped her arms around Alex's neck. Alex automatically wrapped her arms around Piper and looked her dead in the face.

"We care about you too."

The two women fiercely hugged until Alex noted that their son should be taken to bed, yet he looked so cute slumped over to the side with his thumb hanging out of the side of his mouth. Piper happily obliged to let Alex put Parker to bed.

When Piper came out of the master bedroom where she had gone to brush her teeth, Alex was coming out of Parker's room. The two women smiled at each other and began the descent down the stairs, side by side. Halfway down, Piper missed a step causing her arms to flail. Luckily, Alex caught her hand and kept her from plowing down the rest of the stairs. When Piper regained her balance, she noticed that Alex was trying hard not to laugh and was still clutching her hand tightly as they walked down the rest of the stairs, breaking the connection once they reached the bottom.

At the door, Alex brought Piper in for one more hug and faintly heard Piper whisper for her to be safe in Paris this week and she would see her once she got back. Nodding, Alex broke the hug and left the house. Alex knew that if she kept holding on to Piper, she would never leave. Looking back at Piper who was standing outside the door making sure Alex got off safely, she waved and backed out of the drive with one thing on her mind; Convince Kubra to let her off nicely.

* * *

The next day at Popi, Piper couldn't keep her mind off of Alex and the impending decision that Kubra was going to make. She internally berated herself for not coming clean that she knew why the trip was so short, but she wanted to let Alex handle this herself. Piper kept tabs on all the flights to Paris that left all morning that day and kept a watchful eye on the tracker all afternoon, releasing a large breath once all the planes to Paris had landed. Polly asked her constantly why she was so on edge, but Piper used the excuse that Parker had been acting funny that morning. The blonde woman didn't want to hear her best friend's opinion on how she didn't think Alex was worthy, but Piper knew she was, and she was all that Piper wanted.

* * *

As soon as Alex walked through the doors into the JFK airport, her nerves were all over the place. They were the same way after the plane had left the runway. Usually flying calmed her nerves, but this time was the exact opposite. The whole eight hour plane ride, her mind was filled with memories of Parker, Piper, the three of them together, and then there were the horrible thoughts that crossed her mind if something were to happen to her.

The night before she was scheduled to leave for Paris, Nicky had come over to have a beer and discuss what was going on, but little did Alex know that Nicky saw right through her. Nicky knew that the raven haired woman was scared shitless on how the next few days were to play out but assured Alex that everything would be alright. Alex had even told Nicky that if she hadn't heard from her by Friday, to tell Piper and go from there.

When Alex finally got to her hotel room, she pulled out the picture frame she had kept by her bed in the apartment and set on the night stand next to the king sized bed. She wished nothing more than to be happy with her family once again but in the back of her mind, she felt this wasn't going to be easy. Especially after seeing some of the things Kubra had done before when someone attempted to leave the cartel, but she would do anything in the world to have her family back together once more.

The night before the meeting, Alex didn't even eat anything because she was so nervous.

She laid motionless on the bed staring at the ceiling trying to get some sleep, but sleep never came.

Alex felt horrible for not even texting Piper or facetiming her son, but the thought of it possibly being the last time she saw them, was heart wrenching.

Even when the wakeup call she had scheduled for that morning came through she jumped because she was so apprehensive.

Every little movement or sound made Alex that much more on edge.

She kept a close eye on the cab driver in case Kubra had planned something but when they pulled up to Kubra's apartment, he asked for the money, wished her a good afternoon, and sped away.

Only one person got onto the elevator with Alex and she knew that could potentially be her life or death moment, but the person kept staring at their phone, not even acknowledging that Alex was in the elevator. Once the person had gotten on off on a floor below, Alex's mind began to muster up new ways Kubra might torture her such as turning off the electricity in the elevator or cutting the wire sending her on a twenty story fall to the ground floor. But none of those ideas ever happened. The elevator dinged and she was faced with Kubra's door.

Every small step towards Kubra's penthouse door, Alex felt the bile rising in her throat and her legs getting heavy as if they were two thousand pounds each.

Raising her arm to knock on the door was almost impossible, but she finally did it.

Kubra opened the door with a warm smile and a hug and Alex stepped further into the apartment, her heart feeling like it was going to beat out of her chest.

* * *

On the Wednesday that Alex was to have her meeting with Kubra, Piper called in sick to stay home with Parker. With her being so on edge about the outcome, she knew Polly would be able to detect what was going on and she felt she wouldn't even be able to focus on anything knowing her Alex could be in danger. Following Parker around the many rooms of the house and the backyard was a small distraction, but her mind was still cloudy as she thought about Alex and how things were going.

When Parker had finally fell asleep for his afternoon nap, in some ways Piper didn't want him to fall asleep because he was what was keeping her sane. Instead of laying him down in his crib, Piper held him while sitting in the rocker in his room just staring at his innocent face as he slept. His mouth pursing every so often and his eyes fluttering behind his eyelids. She thought when she met Alex in that small Manhattan bar that she had experienced the maximum amount of love any person could endure, but this little boy had proved that theory wrong. Being his mommy wasn't a task but a privilege and she wouldn't give that up for anything in the world.

A knock at the front door broke Piper from gazing at her mini me. Wondering who it could be, Piper gently pressed multiple kisses to Parker's temple and laid him in his crib. With every step down the stairs was a thought of who it could be or something that had happened to Alex. Once she reached the front door, she took a deep breath, readying herself for whatever was about to be thrown at her and opened the door.

"Chapman!"

Piper was staring at Nicky and her wild blonde hair. The woman had the same Cheshire grin she wore when Piper met her ten years ago. She hadn't seen the short, wild haired woman in months. Nicky used to come over to the house multiple times a week when Alex wasn't working but as soon as Piper filed for divorce that was quickly stopped. Piper knew Alex still talked to Nicky, and she was grateful for that. Nicky had been nothing but loyal to Alex and her family, and her love for Parker was contagious.

"Hi, Nicky! What are you doing here?"

Nicky stepped inside the house, removing the dark sunglasses she was wearing.

"We need to have a little chat."

* * *

Alex could feel the sweating running down her back from the nervousness she was feeling. She knew that Kubra could sense her anxiety, but kept the same smug look on his face as he handed Alex a glass of water.

"So, Alex. You'd like to resign? Is that right?"

In all honesty, Alex was surprised he wasn't yelling already.

"Y-Yes." Cursing herself for stuttering, Alex continued. "I would. This business has ruined my family, and it's taken such a toll on me-."

Kubra cut her off. Alex knew this was the end. Silently exhaling, Alex blinked slowly as she watched the man stand up. Fidgeting, Alex began to think of all the happy moments she had with her family, something to take her mind off of the potentially dangerous situation before her.

Once Kubra's hand landed on the small drawer of a desk, Alex felt like she could feel her heart beating in the back of her throat.

Kubra took out a file folder of papers, stuck it under his arm, and returned to the arm chair in front of Alex.

Taking a deep breath, Alex relaxed a little knowing that he wasn't pulling out a weapon.

"Alex." Kubra paused. "You have been faithful to me and for that I am grateful. When Fahri recruited you, I had my doubts because you were so young, but look where you are now, you're at the top. Essentially, there is no more promotions just higher raises and a few extra bonuses. The only way you could have a promotion were if I were to pass the business on to you and I don't see myself doing that."

Alex nodded. It was all she could do to keep from vomiting on Kubra's coffee table.

Reaching for the file of papers, Kubra continued.

"I have never once in the history of this business, had an employee fill out these papers. I don't even know why I had this papers drawn up, because everyone knows getting out of this business is impossible. Are you okay? You aren't saying much?"

Kubra had a look of concern, something Alex had only seen a few times over the past fifteen years.

"Just a little jet-lagged. That's all."

The husky man nodded.

"I know what you are thinking. You are thinking that I'm going to have someone follow you out of here and kill you." His thick accent was still the same tone of voice he had used from the beginning of the meeting. "Alex, you brought too much success for me to do that. I went to your wedding for Christ's sake. Have I done that for anyone else in this business?"

Alex shook her head.

"I kind of like that blonde woman. She tamed you. You used to run wild and fuck girls that had no potential to be mules. But that woman that you married, she helped you get to the top. Your mind wasn't focused on your fuck buddies, you were more focused on being successful, and that's what I wanted."

Taking a pen from his pocket, Kubra flipped open the file and turned it towards Alex.

"Sign the bottom."

"What?" Alex asked as she read the top of the page that said "Resignation Form."

"Just sign the damn paper before I change my mind."

Alex quickly read what she was signing and signed her name as if it was the last thing she would ever do.

"I've seen how devoted you are to your family, but I could also see that Piper needed you. I could see that from when you brought her on those few trips after your son was born."

The brunette didn't know how to respond.

"Losing you from this business, is going to cost me a fortune, but you've always been my favorite. You have a level head. These other fuckers, not so much."

Taking a deep breath, Kubra signed the approval on the bottom of the resignation form. Alex's exhale could be heard from around the world.

"Thank you, so much Kubra."

Alex was speechless. In her fifteen year career with this business, this was the first time she had ever witnessed Kubra be so sincere.

"Keep in touch. Let me know if you have another child. The least you could do is name it after me."

Kubra had Alex escorted out by one of his men, which Alex thought was odd. Her now former boss had even scheduled a car back to her hotel for her.

Alex noticed her heart start to beat a little faster at how weird this all was.

As she thanked the man for the ride, the whole walk to her hotel room, he nerves built back up to the point they were in Kubra's penthouse. By the time she made it to her door, she was sweating again and constantly looking over her shoulder.

The reality of the situation was setting in. Kubra was never nice, so why would he start now?

The moment Alex was in her room and she had made sure no one was stowed away anywhere she sunk down the back of the front door and cried in fear that she had just made the worst decision of her life. The thought of her being killed any second was slowly taking over her mind.

* * *

"Her flight lands at eleven forty-five in the morning. You better be there blondie. She needs you, and I know you need her. Everyone can see it."

"I'll be there Nicky. That's my woman."

With a quick hug over the car window, Nicky backed out of the drive and sped off down the street.

The past hour had been a whirlwind, one moment Piper had been explaining to Nicky every emotion she had felt over the past two years to Nicky telling Piper that if they didn't work things out, she would work things out for them.

Every person around Piper and Alex saw this as a rough patch, not a divorce.

As Piper walked into the house, she walked straight up to Parker's bedroom and resumed her position cradling him, because she knew once Alex got home, that's all she would do for a while.

* * *

As Alex left the hotel she hoped her blood shot eyes were hidden from her glasses. She was so worn out that she didn't even look over her shoulder to see if anyone was following her.

The whole cab ride to the Heathrow, Alex had her head pressed against the window. She couldn't wait to be back home at her apartment. The brunette needed a few days to decompress from the emotional chaos that was wrecking her mind, and then she would start the reconstruction of her family. It was no question now, that Piper wanted the same that Alex did, but she knew it would be a process. Things wouldn't automatically go back to normal.

Once Alex was finally sitting in her first class seat on the plan, her nerves settled a bit knowing that someone would have to be extra fucking sneaky to kill her on the plane.

Alex slept the whole way back to New York. The emotional stress had calmed down enough to allow her to get those eight hours of restless sleep. It helped keep her mind off of Kubra and how devious he could be.

When the flight attendant woke her, she was the last person on the plane. This had never happened to her before. Grabbing her carry-on, Alex rubbed her sleep filled eyes and began the walk into the airport.

As she walked towards the escalator to go towards the baggage claim, she thought she saw Piper from the top, but she quickly remembered she had never even told the blonde woman what was going on.

The further down she got, the more clear things were and the more this blonde woman picked up her pace towards the escalator.

Once Piper got within twenty yards of Alex, Alex realized that it was her blonde. Stopping in front of the escalator, Alex put a hand over her mouth to muffle a cry and by the time the first tear fell, Piper was there to catch it. Piper wrapped her arms so tight around Alex's frame, she thought she was going to suffocate but she didn't care. All she cared about was having Piper back in her arms. Piper turned her head that was buried slightly in Alex's neck to softly kiss her jaw.

"I'm so, so, so, proud of you."

Alex pulled back and slightly nodded. Piper automatically noticed that Alex's eyes were bloodshot and there were dark bags under eyes. The blonde woman's main concern was Alex's mental state. She knew she would be on edge but so was she.

"Thank you for being here."

The tall woman didn't need an explanation as to why Piper was here. She had a pretty good guess as to how Piper found out all the information and she made a note to tell Nicky thank you.

"I'll always be here, Al."

Piper broke the hug but not without placing a chaste kiss on Alex's cheek. Grabbing Alex's hand Piper took her luggage in the other and walked out of the airport hand in hand.

The two women didn't break their hand connection until they got out of the car at Alex's building but quickly resumed the gesture on the way up to the apartment.

Once Alex was inside the apartment, she realized their son was not with them.

"Where's Parker?"

Piper smiled, "He's at daycare. I thought we could go get him together later after you've had some time to unwind."

"I've missed you guys." Alex wrapped Piper in another hug.

"We've missed you too, babe."

Smiling at the nickname, Alex bent down to kiss Piper's cheek. Alex could see the love in Piper's eyes as she down at her. She knew that they had a long road ahead of them, but she had hope that things would work out without any issues. She knew they would.

 **A/N: I apologize for messing up the daily update routine and it has now been almost a week, but life started to throw things at me that had to be taken care of. I'll try to get back on a routine.**

 **This is the longest chapter to date.**

 **I realize I probably messed up greatly by painting Kubra as a good guy and letting Alex off the hook without any grudges, but too many times in other fics Kubra is violent and hostile towards Alex and or her family after she escapes the cartel and I have no desire to write violence towards this family, especially since there is a small child in the picture. Yes, I know, that could make for some great action filled chapters but like I said, I don't wish to write violence with a small child in the picture, or any child for that matter. I hope you guys can understand that.**

 **Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'd love to hear your input!**


	7. How Do We Do This?

**A/N: Over the course of the two weeks this story has been on this site I have gotten multiple questions so I'd like to take the time to answer those for you guys.**

 **To the guest who asked about a collaboration perhaps being in the works…There is no collaboration scheduled at this moment in time. Perhaps later on down the line when I don't have a full schedule. Just know the idea has crossed my mind a few times.**

 **A lot of people have asked me where I get my motivation to write such the broken Vauseman… The latest chapters I have written by blasting 'The 1975' and their new song 'Somebody Else'. The first couple of chapters I was super motivated to write so I didn't really need that extra motivation. I honestly had this idea to write a divorced Vauseman a few months ago, I just never had the time to sit and write.**

 **As for the few people who have asked about my other fic that I wrote that has since been taken down… 'A New Start' has been deleted from my computer, documents manager on FF, and so forth. Essentially I'd have to do some major recovery or rewrite it and I'm not up for either. I had no more patience with that story, but if you stick around for this story to wrap up, it will end with the perfect domesticated Vauseman.**

 **And last but not least, the few guests who have called this "shitty" or "a bad plot". Thank You. If I didn't get negative reviews I'd be worried because I know I'm not a best-selling author and my writing could use some improvements.**

 **I'll continue to write this how I feel it should be written. (:**

 **Without further ado…**

* * *

 _ **How Do We Do This?**_

 _The way Piper's hips swayed slightly as she walked in front of Alex, was driving the brunette woman crazy. Piper's skin tight navy blue, strapless dress accentuated every curve of her body magnificently. Every time the blonde woman would seductively glance over her shoulder, Alex felt a pang of arousal shoot to her core. So badly Alex wanted to take her right there in that long, hotel corridor but Piper wasn't allowing Alex to touch her in any form or fashion. She had even made Alex stand on the opposite end of elevator while staring intently at the taller woman and occasionally looking her up and down. Their looks were pure carnal lust. Alex knew the game Piper was playing, but she wasn't going to have it. She had been away for three weeks and wouldn't be able to handle another two more without a proper dosage of her woman. Alex needed to feel Piper's touch._

 _Alex was at the height of her career and had just scored big in Dubai. Usually Piper accompanied her girlfriend on her international adventures but with Popi on the up and up, she couldn't leave Polly hanging for practically a month. There was no way they could be as successful as they aspired to be if she wasn't there to help._

 _The few days before Alex left for Dubai, Piper and Alex rarely came out of their bedroom in their New York penthouse apartment. When one came out for some reason, the other would follow soon behind and the pair would end up fucking on the nearest surface they could find. After being together for almost two years their sex life had been bizarre to both of them, but those few days proved bizarre to be an understatement. It was like the thought of Alex being away for a month was actually for several years and they had to get started making up for lost time together._

 _Alex had Piper flown out to Dubai after promising Polly she would pay for an all-expense paid trip to the spa. If Alex really had to, she could've went on for the next two weeks with the copious amounts of sexting and phone sex her and Piper had, but Alex was craving the blonde woman's touch. Her own wasn't doing it for her anymore. She yearned for Piper to take her to that place of ecstasy where no one had been able to take her before._

 _Once Piper had landed in Dubai, all she wanted to do was sleep. They had kissed briefly, too briefly for Alex's taste, before Piper took her hand and asked to be taken back to the hotel. None of the caressing or kissing along her neck that Alex was doing in the back of the cab was arousing Piper, it was actually slightly annoying her. All that aroused her mind at the moment was sleep._

 _The moment she stepped into Alex's hotel room, she left her shoes by the door, dropped her jeans at the foot of the bed, and crawled underneath the covers. Alex watched on in awe that her girlfriend wanted to sleep instead of satisfy Alex's needs. Letting the blonde woman sleep, Alex kissed Piper on her temple, and sat out on the balcony to finish replying to emails._

 _The moment Piper woke up and tried initiating sex, Alex denied because they had a business dinner to get to. This thoroughly disappointed Piper, but she couldn't help how exhausted she was after a thirteen hour flight by herself._

 _The whole dinner, Piper teased Alex under the table running the pads of her fingers up and down her inner thigh, sliding her dress up a little more with every pass. Never once did she come in contact with the spot Alex needed her the most._

 _After the pair had finally reached their hotel room door, Alex was fed up with the game Piper was trying to play and broke the no touching rule. She couldn't resist. As Piper tried to insert the key card into the slot, she found Alex's warm whispers in her ear and her soft hands caressing anywhere she could reach, very distracting._

" _I've missed you."_

 _Piper finally got the door to unlock and grabbed Alex's wrist that was trying to inch up her dress and pulled her inside. She had flown thirteen hours, sat next to a screaming baby, and didn't have her flying partner with her, she was going to get her time's worth with Alex while she was in Dubai._

 _The second the couple crossed the threshold into their room, Alex spun Piper around and their lips connected in seconds. Teeth were clashing, hair was being pulled, and their breathing was already labored._

 _Alex blindly reached around behind her to close their door and ran her hands down Piper's back feeling the way her shoulder blades tensed when she reached that particularly sensitive spot between them. The electricity running between them was intoxicating. It had been three weeks without the other's touch and their bodies were reacting as if they were touching for the first time._

 _Piper's hands were lost in Alex's long black tresses as she battled for dominance._

 _Once Alex's hands had reached Piper's zipper on the back of her dress, she moved her lips to the base of Piper's neck and lightly traced a trail upwards towards her ear with the tip of her tongue. She could feel Piper shudder and lightly moan at the sensation._

 _The blonde woman's dress fell to the floor in a heap revealing Piper wearing a white laced thong and no bra. Her nipples already taut and practically begging for Alex's attention. Alex licked her lips as she looked at the beauty in front of her._

 _Alex groaned in pleasure at the sight but was quickly attacked by Piper's lips upon hers. Quickly leaning down to run her hands over Piper's ass and to her thighs, Piper understood the motion and jumped wrapping her legs around Alex's torso. Never once did the pair's lips break until Alex gently laid Piper down on the king size bed. Piper automatically scooted herself upwards towards the head of the bed and watched Alex strip down to her matching red lace bra and boy shorts, blindly throwing her glasses towards the armchair in the corner of the room. There was nothing graceful and sexy about Alex's stripping. It was a furious race to remove all the barriers between her and Piper._

 _Alex stepped towards the bed and looked on at her girlfriend with a look of total desire._

 _The way her toned stomach was flexed as she rested upon her elbows._

 _The way her eyes sparkled in the moonlight shining from the deck._

 _The way her blonde hair fanned out over her shoulders and onto the pillow._

 _It was all enough for Alex to combust right there._

 _Alex slowly kneeled onto the bed as she stared at her girlfriend's hooded eyes. The blonde was still breathing heavily from their intense make out session and from the anticipation of what was to come next. She crawled painfully slow towards Piper and it was making the blonde woman reach for her as soon as she grew near._

 _The moment Alex laid her body on top of Piper's, her elbows holding her weight near Piper's shoulders, Piper gasped from the contact she had missed for three long weeks. Alex gave her a moment for the shock to fade and brushed her hair away from her face._

 _Piper smiled lovingly up at her girlfriend and reached up to place a short but tender kiss upon Alex's slightly swollen lips. Everything about the passionate moment they were sharing seemed to have slowed down._

" _Hi." Alex whispered._

 _Grinning widely, Piper replied._

" _Hi."_

 _Alex buried her head in Piper's neck for a few moments, allowing for the pair to hold each other, before starting her descent south towards the place she longed for the most._

Piper was lying underneath Alex as the pair lay on the couch reminiscing on the times before they had been in this exact position. Alex's head was buried in Piper's neck as she willed herself away from those thoughts of her death potentially being any second. The two had discussed the mental state Alex was in, but Piper had a feeling that Kubra would leave them alone. Alex had always been slightly intimidated by the man, but Piper was determined to keep Alex's head worry free.

All the brunette woman wanted was to be close to Piper. She didn't care about intimacy, just being close to the younger woman. Besides her mother's touch, Piper was the only one who could calm her instantly with a simple touch.

Sensing Piper's train of thought, Alex asked what she was thinking about.

The blonde woman chuckled.

"How we laid like this in Dubai. You hadn't seen me in three weeks so you spontaneously flew me out there not caring what Polly thought. We laid in this position for not even two seconds before you had to keep on with your mission."

Piper could feel Alex grin into her neck as she thought about that particular trip.

"I missed you. And we had some incredible sex those four days you were there. You can't deny that."

Alex raised up onto her elbows as she peered down into her ex-wife's eyes. There were tiny bags under her eyes and they were slightly bloodshot, but she still looked beautiful in her eyes. She was still glowing like she was those ten years ago she met her in that bar.

Piper blushed and turned her head to the side as she laughed.

God how Alex loved her laugh. She could listen to Piper's laugh all day and not get tired of it. It was so genuine and the way her nose crinkled when she did it, made Alex's heart swoon.

"It was, it was. But don't get your hopes up Vause. I think we need to straighten things out first and see how this is going to work." Piper paused, exhaling loudly for the conversation that was about to show its ugly head. "Things have to be different this time Alex."

Now Piper was looking at Alex with all seriousness. Her eyes were wide as they searched Alex's and her hands had moved to keep Alex's head trained directly in front of hers. There wasn't time to be shy and quiet, they needed to get all of their cards out onto the table so they could start over.

Alex whispered, "I know."

"I need to know if you're willing to try this time. Be there for Parker and I full time."

The moment Piper mentioned her son, tears welled up in her eyes. Her heart broke for the little boy, he rarely saw his mother and she knew he longed for her.

"I've missed so much of his life. I wasn't even there for his birth. "

Alex's voice was a mere whisper, threatening to break out into a sob.

Piper ran her thumb across Alex's cheek as she held on for dear life.

"We can't fix that, babe. Was I pissed? Yeah, I was. But now." Piper paused as she wiped a tear that had escaped from the corner of Alex's eye. "Now you CAN be there. We can be a family again. But only if you're willing to commit to it full time. I don't think I could handle this again, Alex."

"I am. I beat myself up so fucking much this past year because I was so oblivious to the destruction I was causing. I was too caught up in work to even think about asking if you were okay. The whole time I was sitting in Kubra's apartment yesterday, all I could think about was you guys and that I would never see you again. Both of you are my everything and I don't know how I seemed to have forgotten that."

Alex had a steady stream of tears rolling down her face. The guilt she was feeling was plastered on her face.

Piper nodded encouraging Alex to go on.

"That night you threw your ring at me, I should've known what you were going to say. I was being too damn selfish to even consider your feelings. I could've done this a year ago and we would've never had to stand before that judge."

"There's a reason for everything. It fucking KILLED me to have to file for divorce, but Alex, nothing was working. Nothing caught your attention. The fights were becoming routine almost when you were home and if I never would have taken action, just think about where would be now."

Alex shook her head willing the thoughts that had flashed in her mind to go away. Piper was thoroughly surprised that Alex hadn't got up from her position on top of her to find a way to rebuild that wall they had just broken through. Too many times before when Alex had to face reality, she quickly found a way around it. Shoving it to the back of her mind, hoping to forget about it.

"I'm sorry. If I could take all of it back, I would. You didn't deserve any of what I put you through. You needed me, and Parker needed me, but I failed to be there."

"You weren't ready or willing to face this head on. We might think this year has only caused us damage, but if we really try hard we could find some positives."

Alex nodded her head.

"There was never once over this past year that I didn't think about you and Parker. Constantly I would try to find something to distract myself or fill that gaping hole in my heart, but I couldn't. The only thing that could fill it was you two."

Piper smiled at the previous statement.

"I never stopped thinking about you either. We can do this Alex. I know we can. So what do you say hmm? Give us another shot?"

Alex gazed down into Piper's blue orbs, of course she would give them another shot. Piper was and always will be her soulmate. She couldn't deny it no matter how hard she tried.

"Yeah." Alex grinned. "I one hundred percent want to give this another shot."

Within a split second of Alex's decision, Piper craned her head upwards to lightly kiss Alex on the lips. Alex responded back with a few little pecks. Not wanting to rush into things, the couple smiled at each other. They knew they would be okay, they just knew it.

* * *

Throughout the afternoon, the two women sorted out that Alex was going to stay at her apartment for a few more months while they continued to rebuild their relationship and would move back in to their house when Alex felt ready. Piper had insisted Alex could move back in straight away but she didn't want to rush things. She liked the pace they were going and if the couple was patient they would get to where they wanted to be. The pair also decided that they would only take Parker to daycare two days out of the week so he still built up his social skills, and the other days Alex would drive to their house and watch him. Parker would be thrilled to know that his mama would be spending a lot more time with him.

* * *

When Piper and Alex picked up Parker from daycare, the toddler was ecstatic to see his mama there. He ran as fast his little legs would allow him and jumped into Alex's waiting arms.

"Hi, buddy."

Alex clutched the boy close to her as she breathed in the sweet scent on top of his head.

Piper watched on in awe as she felt her heat beat a little bit faster. She knew they still had a ways to go to get back to that perfect life they had when Alex was home, but she had a strong suspicion that this time would be even better. Alex had confessed her wrongs and vowed to be a better wife and mother this time and Piper had no doubts in her mind that Alex would falter.

 **A/N: I'm sorry this is so short, but life is throwing boulders at me right now.**


	8. The Final Steps

_**The Final Step**_

Piper was blushing as she listened to the things Alex was whispering in her ear while they walked up the driveway to the house. They had just concluded another perfect date night. Piper couldn't even keep track of what number it was, because they had all been so fantastic.

The great changes that Alex was exhibiting made Piper fall in love with this woman even more. She was around more, she was more focused on her family rather than some drop-off thousands of miles away, and her paranoia had decreased significantly. It had been almost five months since the older woman had left the cartel and things were on the up and up. Alex had even joined the Popi staff as the imports and exports manager after she and Polly had sat down and came to an agreement that if she were to ever hurt Piper again, Polly had full permission to fire her and kick her ass for hurting Piper a second time. Seeing Alex at work the two days a week she came in only helped strengthen their relationship even further. Polly constantly griped at them for the constant love stares and steamy make out sessions she caught them in at the back of the store in the stock room. The couple couldn't help it, things were working for them and they couldn't be happier. They were like two lovesick teenagers.

Alex had stayed over at Piper's house multiple times in the past month and vice versa. Parker had called it a 'sleepover', but there really wasn't much sleeping going on between the two. Alex had made Piper wait two and a half months before they engaged in any kind of sexual act. Piper was ready to go after three weeks but respected the brunettes' wishes even though it was much to her dismay. This was completely unlike Alex to wait, especially with sex, but Piper understood that Alex didn't want to fuck things up. Overall it had been over a year since Alex had touched Piper, but it was worth it. The first skin on skin contact was a sensory overload to the pair and the rest of the night was magical. They not only reconnected on a physical level but broke through another emotional level.

Piper quietly unlocked the front door and before she could get the door all the way open, Finn leaped at Piper with a sleepy Parker following close behind. Inside Piper was disappointed that Parker wasn't already asleep so she and Alex could have some alone time, but quickly painted a smile on her face to greet her god son.

"Hi Finn!"

Alex quickly walked around Piper to tend to their sleepy two year old. You could practically see he was ready to fall asleep just standing there. The mother and son quickly disappeared up the stairs while Polly gathered Finn and told Piper goodbye.

Piper saw her best friend and son out, while profusely thanking her for watching her son on such short notice. She was grateful that she and Polly were still friends after all these years because although she had a bad habit of bluntly stating her opinion, she was there for her through every major event the past ten years.

Back inside, Alex gently laid Parker in his new big boy bed that she had purchased for him and hoped to God he would stay in it and not decide to have a play time session in the middle of the night. The small boy had successfully learned to scale the crib and get out of it a month earlier. Alex being worried that he would fall and hurt himself, took him to pick out his new bed. Parker had been a little ball of excitement when Alex had pieced the simple, wooden, twin sized bed together earlier that morning. Parker was even insistent that he was a big boy now that he was out of the 'baby bed'. Alex felt confident that he wouldn't even move because it was way past his bedtime but she still had her concerns.

The once seven pound boy was now twenty nine pounds and growing smarter every day. Piper had even noticed that since Alex was around more with her extensive vocabulary, Parker's vocabulary was expanding very rapidly also in good ways and bad. One night while in the bath tub, Parker had dropped a toy he was playing with outside the tub and Piper clearly heard the word 'shit' come out of his tiny mouth as he peered over the edge. It took all of Piper's being to not laugh in front of her son for the saying, knowing exactly where he picked it up from, but also made sure that he understood it wasn't a nice word to say.

As Piper closed the front door, she turned to see Alex looking down over the balcony at her with a loving smile. Piper stood in the center of the foyer smiling back at the raven haired woman.

"Did he go down okay?"

Alex nodded.

"Didn't even want to be read to."

"He really must have been tired."

Relieved that Parker didn't put a up a fight to go to bed, Piper began her journey up the stairs and was greeted by Alex at the top step. Alex stopped the blonde woman and grasped her chin between her thumb and index finger and placed a chaste kiss on her lips. The two intertwined their fingers and walked the short distance from the landing to the master bedroom.

As the two changed into something more comfortable, Piper took a look around the closet. Alex had already filled up two drawers and half of a rack in the closet, but what used to be her side was still pretty empty from when she moved out months ago. In Piper's mind, she was ready to take that final step and let Alex move back in, but whether the brunette was ready for that she wasn't sure.

Alex eyed Piper from her side of the closet knowing she was deep in thought. Piper had this look when she was clearly debating something inside that pretty little head of hers.

"Quit thinking so hard." Alex joked while pulling on a pair of sweatpants and an old band t-shirt.

Piper snapped her head towards the older woman.

"What?"

Alex sauntered over to Piper and placed her arms around her thin waist.

"I said, stop thinking so hard."

Piper wrapped her arms around Alex's neck and looked into the taller woman's emerald eyes.

"I can't. It's a pretty big topic."

Alex's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Did I not hear something correctly in our meeting this morning? We don't have any huge orders at the moment."

Piper smiled and shook her head.

"No."

"Then what is it?"

Piper leaned forward to confess her secret and whispered into Alex's ear.

"I want you to move back in."

Pulling back to gauge the older woman's reaction, Piper added.

"Only if you're ready too, of course. I just want you here, and I'm pretty sure our son wants you here too."

Alex grinned wide at the blonde woman and leaned forward to play the little game Piper started and whispered, "I'd like that too."

Piper and Alex had been doing extremely well to let each other know where they stood in this new chapter of their lives. Rarely did they stumble upon a topic that wasn't agreed on between the two. Not only was Alex around more and had figured out her priorities, she had been expressing her thoughts more openly than she ever had before. On the other hand Piper was also finally feeling relieved that she wasn't pulling a majority of the weight in the relationship and it had equaled out how it was supposed to be.

* * *

The next Saturday, Alex and Piper left Parker with Polly and went to move things from Alex's apartment back to their house. It took all of about four hours to box everything up and moved into the back of Piper's BMW and Nicky's truck. Nicky had offered to help when Lorna had left to go visit her mother in New Jersey for the weekend.

The old friend was happy for Alex and Piper. It had been hard to see both of them go through such a detrimental time, but she had sneaking suspicion that they would end up back together. Even when you looked at the couple you just knew that they belonged together. Nicky was like Polly was to Piper, they both expressed their opinions and didn't hold back because they knew it was what their friend needed to hear. If it wasn't for Nicky's swift kick in the ass she had served Alex the night of the divorce, Alex would probably still be debating on how to break the news to Kubra that she wanted out of the cartel.

Later that night after Alex had hung the last article of clothing in that once spacious looking closet, she felt complete. She had her beautiful blonde woman back in her life, and she was finally under the same roof with her son. Thinking back on the past year, Alex knew it had been a rough one, but she knew the next one be phenomenal.

Alex walked out of the closet and downstairs towards the living room where she found Piper playing on the floor with Parker. They had pulled out the rug that had a tiny town on it and the two were running all of Parkers cars and trucks across it. It warmed Alex's heart to see the two together. Piper was a great mom to Parker and Alex made a mental note to thank her for that later.

As soon as Parker saw Alex's tall frame leaning against the entry way into the living room he popped up and ran towards her. Alex scooped him up and lowered his cheek near her face to give him a kiss. Parker had been ecstatic when Piper and Alex had broken the news to him that his mama was gonna be there all the time again.

Piper stood up off the ground noting that the longer she sat on the wood floor the more her legs hurt when she got up. Walking over to the pair, Piper's phone began to ring. The display blinked 'Carol' in white letters. Quickly pecking Alex on the lips and Parker on the cheek, she walked into the kitchen to take the call.

While Alex sat on the floor commenting on how cool every car or truck was that Parker shoved in her face, she heard Piper's voice raise multiple times throughout the duration of the phone call. Every now and then she would catch Piper pacing back and forth in the kitchen. Wanting to make sure the blonde was okay, Alex left the two year old to his trucks and walked into the kitchen.

She found Piper leaning against the island with her forehead in her palm while the other held the phone up to her ear. Alex could faintly hear Carol berate Piper for allowing her to move back into the house. Apparently the gardener for the house across the street was the exact gardener that Carol used and had told her that he had observed Piper and Alex moving things in and being affectionate. Piper or Alex didn't put it past themselves that Carol would be so sneaky like that, but it was still a surprise.

Piper had told her parents that she and Alex were on good terms and spending more time together for the sake of their son. She failed to inform them that she and Alex were also trying to rebuild their relationship together. Carol was not at all fond of Alex being around but when the subject of her grandson came into the conversation, her toned changed dramatically. Piper had hid the impending relationship for five months and she was finally caught.

Alex placed a comforting hand on the small of Piper's back to get her attention. Piper turned into the touch and placed her forehead on Alex's shoulder.

"Yes mother, I understand, but this is my life and I know what's best for me. I don't appreciate you sending me numbers of men from the country club when I already am in a committed relationship."

Carol went into another rant and Piper sighed heavily into Alex's shoulder.

A couple of minutes later when the conversation was wrapping up, Piper agreed to bring Parker by the next morning for brunch but she and Alex wouldn't be attending. She wouldn't deny her parents to see their only grandchild because of the support they put forth to make sure he was in good hands during the divorce, but if Carol couldn't accept that Alex was back in the picture, she didn't want to be there. In the back of her mind, the blonde woman wondered what her father thought of all this. He always had a strong liking for Alex, she could talk money with him and she cared for his daughter a way that she deserved to be treated. Even when Piper had personally told him about the divorce over a morning coffee he offered to pay for marriage counseling because he knew in his heart that Alex was the right one for Piper. It was his fatherly instinct kicking in.

Piper ended the call and set the phone down before wrapping herself around Alex's tall frame. It was a few moments before Piper spoke.

"We have to take Parker for brunch in the morning but we aren't staying."

"We're not staying?"

Alex knew that Piper had become bolder as she talked to her mother, but she didn't know that Piper had grown that bold to skip out on the routine Sunday brunch.

"She can't accept the fact that we're together again. I'll let her see her grandson, but we're not staying."

The brunette woman could understand the fact that Piper wanted to avoid drama with her mother but inside she knew that if Piper didn't grace Carol with her presence but allowed her to see Parker, her mother would be okay with that. Alex had noticed from the beginning when Parker was born, that Carol cared more about her precious grandchild than her own daughter. On the other hand, Alex was worried that Carol Chapman was trying to turn her son into a full on modern day WASP.

"Pipes." Alex paused. "Don't you think that avoiding her would just make the situation worse? I mean I know emotional chaos is not something you're great at handling, but she needs to understand that if I'm in the picture again, she's going to HAVE to see me eventually. I'm Parker's mother too, does she not understand that?"

Piper shook her head.

"She'll avoid you at all costs, like she always does."

"All she cares about is her grandson. Don't you think that if we took that privilege away she might, just might, try?"

"I don't know. I know things are never going to be great between you two because she can't come to grips that I am in love with a woman, but if she could just tolerate you for two hours every Sunday and every holiday, that would be fantastic."

Alex nodded her head to encourage Piper to keep going.

"I love you and that's not ever going to change, but it makes me feel so horrible that she treats you like she does."

A look of defeat was plastered on Piper's face. Alex smiled and cupped Piper's face gently with her hands. The tall woman bent down to place a small kiss on Piper's lips and rested her forehead on the shorter woman's.

"I love you too, and I'm telling you this now, I don't care how she treats me because you make up for it. I'd have to say I've done a pretty damn good job holding my tongue with her the past ten years. If we can just come to an agreement to tolerate each other, that's all I will ever ask of the woman."

"You're right." Piper murmured.

"And in all honesty, I don't want Parker to grow up thinking his grandmother and mother hate each other."

"Okay. We can try to be civil with her. Obviously yelling doesn't achieve anything."

Piper nodded as she strained her lips upwards to kiss Alex again.

"I could've told you that."

Alex winked.

Piper reached behind the taller woman and placed a loud smack on Alex's ass.

"Smartass."

Just as Piper's hand removed itself from Alex's backside, Parker walked into the kitchen and hung on the refrigerator handle. If Parker was old enough Piper would have guessed that he was looking at his mother's like 'Why are you constantly being affectionate? It's gross' but instead she settled that on he was thirsty. Picking up on what Piper was grinning at, Alex chuckled.

* * *

 **The Next Morning…**

The whole ride to the Chapman manor, Piper clutched Alex's hand tight within hers. Even with Alex placing small kisses on the back of Piper's hand, she could still tell she was nervous.

"Relax, babe."

Alex glanced away from the road to look at Piper. Her demeanor told it all, she was nervous and fearful for what was to come of the morning.

Once the family had pulled up to the large house, with the very detailed front yard with precisely cut hedges and gardens, Alex reached over the center console to place a lingering kiss on Piper's lips and told her that everything was going to be okay.

After getting a sleeping Parker from his seat, and situating him on her hip, Alex walked to the front of the car where Piper was waiting and grabbed her hand.

The walk to the front door seemed to happen in the blink of an eye to Piper but before she pressed the doorbell, she situated herself and took a deep breath.

Not thirty seconds after the doorbell was rung, Carol Chapman opened the door with Bill trailing behind her.

"Hello, Mother."

 **A/N: I'm sorry the previous chapter was of poor quality, I hope this one was a little better. Things have just been super crazy for me.**

 **Also, this chapter is the second to last, and there will be an epilogue posted soon after the next chapter is posted.**


	9. The Epilogue

**A/N: I pretty much made an executive decision to just have eight chapters and an epilogue. Longer note at the end.**

 **Enjoy.**

 _ **The Epilogue**_

 **A Year and a Half Later…**

Alex had been thinking about this day for weeks. She had the ring in her possession for a few days but couldn't find a way to propose to Piper that she liked. The brunette woman was becoming impatient because she wanted this woman to have this ring on her finger already. They had discussions about whether they wanted to keep the rings from their first marriage but quickly decided that if they were to get married again, they needed a new symbol, something symbolizing this new beginning. Piper claimed she was content without being married. This was very surprising to Alex, but she soon learned from Polly that Piper had mentioned marriage quite a lot in the past few months.

Parker crawled by Alex's office door pulling his dump truck along with him. No matter how many times Piper told the small boy was told not to roll his cars and trucks down the hard wood floor, he just grinned that smug grin he surely learned from Alex and kept on. Piper didn't know why she bothered to tell him no, he always got his way anyways.

The raven haired woman soon got an idea as she looked on at her son. She would include him in the proposal. She knew Piper couldn't tell their son no, no matter how hard she tried.

Quickly getting up from her office chair, she stepped over the small boy who was still in front of Alex's office door and went to go see what her lover was up to. Alex found her woman in the kitchen loading the dishwasher. She was beginning to have difficulty bending over due to the rather large baby bump, but it was cute to Alex to watch Piper waddle around the kitchen.

This was perfect. The blonde woman's guard was down, she would never see it coming.

Alex and Piper had decided to have another child one day as they were walking around the New York zoo with Parker. The thought had been floating around Piper's mind for months now that everything had returned back to normal. She longed for Parker to have a sibling. Piper refused for her son to be an only child because she didn't want Parker to turn out like Finn; spoiled and demanding. As the family was observing the penguins, Piper blurted out the confession and Alex simply agreed. There was no explanation or compromise, just a simple agreement. Three weeks later, Piper had the first implantation procedure done, and three weeks after that, she found out she was pregnant. Alex was ecstatic and Parker on the other hand, didn't know what to think. All he requested was for the baby to be boy but the couple soon found out they were due to have a little girl at the end of spring. Parker had thrown a tantrum at the news of a little sister, and pleaded with his parents to change it. Little by little as Piper got further along in the pregnancy, Parker was warming up to the idea, but wouldn't interact with Piper's bump unless she grabbed his hand and set it on her stomach. Alex tried to explain that he was going to have to be a big brother and the responsibilities that would come with it, but he was more interested in the ice cream sitting in front of him. Piper and Alex didn't want to push the boy but she feared for what was to come after their little girl was here.

Alex grabbed the four year old and brought him into her office, shutting the door so Piper couldn't hear the plan.

"Mama!" Parker whined and tried to escape from his mother's grasp. He was flabbergasted that Alex had just interrupted his playtime.

"Hold on."

Alex sat down in the office chair with Parker sitting on her lap.

"Do you want to help Mama with something?"

Parker eagerly nodded his head up and down, forgetting what he was previously doing. Alex had his full attention.

Alex opened the drawer beside her desk, shuffling around a few papers, and pulled out the tiny, black velvet box. Parker craned his neck to see what was inside when Alex opened it. She took out the ring carefully and handed Parker the empty box.

"Okay. What you're gonna do is, you're going to take this little box to Mommy and say 'Please marry my mama.' Do you think you could do that?"

"Yep!" Parker grinned.

Alex left out her part of the plan in order to not confuse the little boy but was sure in her heart that her plan would work perfectly.

The small boy hopped off Alex's lap and ran into the kitchen clutching the little black box.

Alex could feel her heart rate increasing as she walked to the second entrance of the kitchen so she could be behind Piper on her knee when Parker gave her the ring box.

" _What in the hell is wrong with me? Why am I so nervous?" Alex thought._

Standing just outside the kitchen waiting for her cue, she heard Piper acknowledge their son.

"Hi buddy!" Piper smiled as she closed the door to the dishwasher and started it.

Alex poked her head around the corner to look at the boy and gave him a thumbs up for encouragement.

Piper noticed the small box in Parker's hands.

"What do you have babe?"

Parker held the small box up to his mother and said those four words perfectly.

"Pwease marry..my mama."

Piper grinned at the small boy and took the box. Her excited expression fell smooth off of her face when she realized there was no ring in the box, but quickly knew Alex was behind her when she heard rustling and saw Parker reaching out behind her. Sure enough when Piper turned around, there Alex was on her knee in the kitchen, grasping the ring in between her thumb and index finger. Parker had nestled himself between Alex's arms as he stood mindlessly tracing the tribal band that Alex had tattooed on her forearm. A wide grin was plastered on the raven haired woman's face.

"What do you say babe? Will you marry me? Again?"

Alex and Piper both chuckled.

"Yes. I will marry you again."

The farther on in their relationship the pair got, the easier it was to open up and laugh about their past. Some parts hadn't been easy, but together they got past whatever hurdle they had to jump over. Piper couldn't imagine a life without her raven haired woman, she was her everything.

Alex smiled and slipped the two karat halo diamond with the diamond encrusted band on Piper's finger.

Piper bent down as best she could to kiss Parker who was already over the moment and was trying to get back to his trucks. The moment Piper pulled away from Parker, he ducked and ran out of the kitchen. When Piper looked back to Alex, she found the raven haired woman with a radiant smile. The blonde woman gave Alex a moment to stand up and wrapped her arms around her neck.

"I love you." Alex whispered looking deep into Piper's baby blue eyes.

"I love you too."

The shorter woman leaned up and captured Alex's lips in a tender kiss. The abundance of love that was being poured out into the single kiss, was endless. Piper and Alex's tongues weren't in a duel for dominance but waltzing together as if they were dancing. Alex moved to cup Piper's face in between her hands and broke the kiss but placed a few more pecks upon Piper's lips before breaking away completely. After concluding the kiss, Alex bent down to place a lingering kiss on Piper's bump.

"I think she's taking a nap."

Piper pressed a hand to the side of her bump to detect any movement.

"I'd sure hope so. She's wouldn't give you a break this morning."

"Four more weeks." Piper replied as she leaned over to lay her head down on Alex's shoulder, the reality of the engagement and the end of her pregnancy was finally hitting her and she was overwhelmed with joy. Alex smiled to herself and laid both hands on the side of Piper's bump, placing a soft kiss on the top of her head.

 **Two weeks later…**

Piper was impatiently pacing back and forth in Red's living room waiting to be escorted down the aisle once again by her father. While out searching for Alex a new wedding band, the couple had decided to just have a small, intimate ceremony in the backyard of Red's house that was adorned with a beautiful flower garden and trellis of roses along the wooden fence. It was a very spur of the moment idea. Alex had proposed the idea to get married before their daughter arrived so they could be focused completely on her arrival. Piper immediately fell in love with the idea and had the details set in two hours.

There were nine guests in attendance not including the minister. Polly, Pete, Finn, Nicky, Lorna, Red, her husband Dimitri, Bill Chapman, and Parker were the lucky guests to attend the wedding. Carol Chapman wasn't able to physically make it due to her falling ill with pneumonia, but sent her felicitations and asked for lots of pictures.

Carol and Alex's relationship had become a better one in the past year. After a rather civil meeting on that particular Sunday brunch, the two could be alone in a room and have a simple conversation without an argument or have Parker as a buffer so that was a huge breakthrough. Slowly but surely, Carol was warming up to Alex as she learned about Alex's mother and what a great woman she was. Not to mention, the addition of another grandchild was helping the pair get along better, also.

Alex had chosen Parker to be her best man in the wedding. Nicky took the news better than Alex thought she would in all honesty. The crazy haired woman actually grinned wildly the first time she heard the idea. Nicky had been Alex's best man in her and Piper's first wedding and happily agreed to let Parker take her place. Alex figured Nicky could sit and take notes for if she and Lorna were ever to get married. Upon telling the thought to her best friend she got wide grin and a playful punch in the shoulder.

Parker had picked out a nice necklace for Piper to wear during the wedding and had taken pride in picking it out for the big day. When he walked into the living room of Red's house to present the necklace to his mother, Piper shed a tear to see her baby boy looking so sharp and handsome. The small boy was wearing black dress pants, a white button down shirt and a black vest accented with a black bow tie. The boy had even convinced Alex to give his beach blonde hair a small fohawk for the event.

"Is this for me?"

Piper sat down on the black leather couch so she could be closer to Parker's level and clutched him as close to her body as she could with the baby bump. The small boy rested his tiny hand on top of Piper's stomach, making his mother melt a little bit more.

Parker nodded his head eagerly into Piper's neck.

"I picked it out!"

When Piper pulled the lid off the rectangular box, she gasped and was greeted with a diamond pendant necklace that went beautifully with her engagement ring.

Parker looked on with a wide grin, ecstatic that his mother liked the necklace he had picked out for her.

"I love it, babe." Piper gave Parker a lingering kiss on the cheek and placed the necklace around her neck.

"Did mama do your hair?"

Parker just smiled smugly, a trait he had picked up from Alex, as he looked at his mother. Piper smirked.

"I take that as a yes." Piper laughed. "It looks super handsome on you. Maybe Red's granddaughter will show up later and she'll see how handsome you are."

Parker blushed as his mother teased him about the small crush he had on Red's six year old granddaughter. Laughing at her son's reaction, Piper brought him in for another hug.

Bill Chapman soon appeared in the room signaling that it was time for the ceremony to begin. Piper gave Parker another quick kiss as she handed him off to her father to be taken to Alex who was nervously waiting for her bride. When Bill reappeared, he hoisted his daughter off the couch and asked if she was ready to do this again.

"Yes, Daddy. I'm sure."

Piper smiled warmly at the older man. She could see his once brown hair was now almost fully gray and the stubble on his face was gray as well. The older man, placed a kiss on his daughter's cheek and walked her through the house to the back door. Piper could see Alex through the crack in the curtains, and she looked nervous but gorgeous in her black woman's pant suit that came just above her ankles to show off the black pumps she was wearing. Her hair was straightened and her secretary glasses were perched high up on her nose. Piper observed her turn around and talk to Parker, and Parker's face lit up. On the other side of the altar, Polly stood relaxed and ready to see her best friend walk down the aisle.

The walk to Alex was oh so familiar but felt so right. The pair locked eyes from the time the back door opened to when Piper was being handed off by her father.

Alex couldn't take her eyes off the beauty that was about to become her wife. Piper was dressed in an ivory strapless maxi dress. The way her curves were accentuated made Alex's mouth water. Pregnancy had only helped Piper's body and the raven haired woman loved it.

The ceremony was sweet and intimate. Piper and Alex exchanged vows they had written personally instead of ones they repeated as the minister said them. That alone made the wedding dearer to the heart. Tears were both in their eyes as they read what they wrote. Never once did the pair break their hand connection. It was their anchor and nothing could break the bond between them. The kiss was one out of a fairy tale, it was magical and sweet.

The pair was officially married once again and they intended to keep it that way. The love that surrounded the couple was impenetrable but contagious at the same time. Nicky Nichols even cried during the reciting of vows.

* * *

Later that night as the group of people fellowshipped and celebrated the newly married couple, Polly had talked Piper into letting her take Parker after the reception so she and Alex could have some alone time to celebrate their joining and to be kid-free one last time before their daughter's arrival. Piper had instantly taken the shorter brown haired woman up on her offer.

As the couple was bid farewell with everyone blowing bubbles at them, Alex couldn't help to feel so grateful for the friends and family around her. Bill hugged both women and gave them his and Carol's best wishes. The couple kissed their son once more before getting in Piper's BMW. Lorna and Polly had written 'Just Married' on the back. Alex laughed to herself when she could hear Nicky shouting provocative comments at her as she put the car in gear. Before driving off, Alex reached across the center console to grab her wife's hand and leaned over to place a chaste kiss on her soft lips. Piper looked on at her wife with a loving look.

Alex had offered to reserve a hotel room for the night when they had planned the wedding, but Piper felt she would be more comfortable in their own home considering how far along in her pregnancy she was. Wanting what was best for her very pregnant wife, Alex happily obliged to spend the night in their own home together.

"This feels so weird not having Parker with us." Piper commented as the pair walked into their house. The blonde woman gasped as she noticed that from the front door up to the bedroom, there was a path of rose petals leading up the stairs and into their master bedroom. "Alex. Oh my. Did you do all this?"

Piper was greeted with a smiling Alex as she turned around to look at the taller woman.

"Parker helped."

Alex shrugged and sensually ran her hands down Piper's sides and across her large baby bump. The younger woman placed her hands on the back of Alex's neck, interlocking her fingers.

"So you knew that Polly was gonna ask if she could take Parker?"

Piper raised an eyebrow catching onto her wife's trickery.

"She owed us a favor since we kept Finn last weekend."

Shaking her head, Piper reached up to kiss her wife.

"You're a clever one, Vause."

The couple had decided to relax in a warm bath together to unwind from the day's events. Throughout the day Piper had been feeling her body pull downward and was having slight contractions but thought nothing of it. Alex hadn't even stepped foot into the tub of water when Piper exclaimed her water broke. Sure enough, just looking at the water could prove the declaration.

The next four hours were a whirlwind. Alex had quickly driven Piper to the hospital and were admitted in ten minutes. Piper looked completely calm and relaxed besides the contractions but she was handling it like a pro. Alex on the other hand didn't know what to do. The blonde woman was sure Alex wore a rut in the floor from how many times she paced. Alex had expected herself to be nervous considering that she missed Parker's birth, but she had underestimated how nerve wracking it was.

When it came time to push, Piper gripped onto Alex's hand until Alex was convinced it was broken. It took a total of eight pushes to bring their daughter into the world. After the newborn was placed on Piper's chest and Alex cut the cord, Piper witnessed Alex be at a complete loss for words as tears streamed down her face.

The couple named their little girl Emma Diane Nicole Vause. She was all of six and half pounds and twenty inches long. Piper and Alex both couldn't choose one middle name so they opted for two. The small girl had slightly puffy, rosy cheeks and her lips puckered in her sleep just like Piper's did. Alex fell in love all over again when she held her daughter for the first time and it made Piper smile at

Parker's first visit was very emotion filled for the parents. The little boy was so overwhelmed at the thought of his little sister finally being here, he asked Alex to take her back to the store. What surprised Piper was that he held her for more than a minute. Earlier that morning she had bet Alex he would hold her for less than thirty seconds. Alex made sure to have gifts ''from Emma" to make him feel special and loved. The small peace offering helped, but the couple knew it would take time. Piper had been the same way when Cal was born, and she knew it was just as big of an adjustment for him as it was for her and Alex.

* * *

 **6 Months Later…**

The family of four were on a picnic in Central Park enjoying their Saturday afternoon. Parker had insisted that Emma sit with him on the picnic blanket. The parents shared a nervous but hopeful look, and placed Emma in between Parker's outstretched legs. The small boy immediately wrapped his arms around her tiny torso and hugged her. Parker had warmed up slowly to Emma being around over the past six months and Alex and Piper didn't want to deny him a bonding session with his sister when he asked.

It had been over two and a half years since Alex had smoothly resigned from the cartel and her life couldn't be better. She knew what her priorities were, she had a fantastic wife, and two great kids. Never again was she going to give that up for something else. Nothing could equate to how she felt around her family and the love that was shared. They had a bumpy year and Alex felt confident that she could say her and Piper recovered fully and were even better from that once detrimental time.

The past two years had brought her wife back and also added a little girl to their family who was growing more and more into her personality every day, Parker was getting smarter and learning to read higher level books every week, and Piper was expanding Popi to the west coast. Alex felt complete and couldn't fathom spending another day without her family. It was a slow, emotional start but one step at a time, she got to where she desired to be.

 **A/N: Well, I hope that was satisfactory enough. Thank you to every single person who has left a review, favorited, or followed this story. I never thought this sort of premise would have such a positive feedback. So thank you for that.**

 **There are no ideas floating around my head for another fic anytime soon. It will probably be this summer before I write again if I can come up with an idea that I can settle with. A monumental moment in my life is approaching rather quickly and I'd like to be focused on that. Hence why this story was only nine chapters long.**

 **I appreciate every single one of you for taking the time to read this.**

 **Drop me a review whether you thought it was completely horrible or a great read. I appreciate every single review.**

 **Until next time.**


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